Journal List > J Korean Soc Transplant > v.25(1) > 1034346

Hwang, Jang, Kwak, Han, Park, Kim, Kim, and Cho: The Changes of Graft Survival and Causes of Graft Failure after Kidney Transplantation

Abstract

Background

The incidence of acute rejection has decreased with the introduction of new immunosuppressive agents. However, several studies have shown that allograft survival has not clearly improved over the past few decades.

Methods

We reviewed patients who underwent kidney transplantation between 1982 and 2007. We compared the causes of graft loss for three decades: 1982∼1990 (period I), 1991∼2000 (period II), and 2001∼2007 (period III), with the clinical characteristics of patients with functioning grafts and patients who lost their allografts.

Results

There were 785 recipients with a mean age of 36.1 years, and 65.2% were male. Graft loss occurred in 329 patients (41.9%), and the most common cause of graft loss was chronic allograft nephropathy (CAN, 52.0%), followed by patient death (17.6%), post-transplant glomerulonephritis (12.8%), and non compliance (7.9%). During the three time periods, 129, 172, and 28 patients lost their grafts, respectively. Five-year graft survival was 61.5%, 78.4%, and 90.8%, respectively, and increased significantly (P<0.000). CAN, as a cause of graft loss, fell from 65.1% (period I) to 32.1% (period III, P<0.000), but patient death increased from 12.4% to 32.1% (P=0.034). A multivariate analysis revealed that significant risk factors for graft loss included an older donor, transplantation at period I, and dual immunosuppression. Use of tacrolimus and mycophenolate mofetil was associated with a significantly reduced risk of graft loss.

Conclusions

Graft survival has increased over the last three decades whereas the proportion of CAN, the most common cause of graft loss, has decreased. Attention to the main causes of graft loss, CAN, and patient death will offer potential improvement in graft survival.

References

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Fig. 1.
Graft survival rates according to period of transplantation by Kaplan-Meier analysis.
jkstn-25-22f1.tif
Table 1.
Demographic characteristics
Parameters Patients (n=785)
No. of total transplantation 785
Recipients  
Age (range), yr 36.1±11.3 (3∼67)
Sex, male (%) 512 (65.2)
Donors  
Age (range), yr 38.1±12.4 (5∼68)
Sex, male (%) 445 (56.7)
Deceased donor (%) 168 (21.4)
History of previous graft (%) 64 (8.2)
Major immunosuppressant (%)  
Cyclosporine 481 (61.3)
Tacrolimus 286 (36.4)
Adjuvant immunosuppressant (%)  
Azathioprine 190 (13.9)
Mycophenolate mofetil 374 (47.6)
No. of immunosuppressant (%)  
Dual 317 (40.4)
Triple 468 (59.6)

Duration of follow up (range), mo 86.8±58.7 (0.1∼292.4)

Table 2.
Causes of graft failure
N Diagnosis No. of patients (n=329) Percent
Chronic allograft nephropathy 171 52.0
Biopsy proven 101 30.6
Clinically 70 21.4
Acute rejection 17 5.2
Acute cellular 11 3.3
Hyperacute / acute humoral 6 2.9
Patient death with functioning graft t 58 17.6
Posttransplant glomerulonephritis 42 12.8
Non compliance 26 7.9
Allograft infection 4 1.2
Herpes virus 1 0.3
Polyoma virus 3 0.9
Primary nonfunctioning allograft 4 1.2
Allograft rupture 3 0.9
Post biopsy complication 2 0.6
Allograft renal artery occlusion 2 0.6
Table 3.
Causes of patient's death with functioning graft
Diagnosis No. of patients (n=58) Percent
Infection 18 (31.0)
Malignancy 17 (29.3)
Cardiovascular 8 (13.8)
Hepatic failure 4 (6.9)
Suicide 2 (3.4)
Traffic accident 2 (3.4)
Sudden death, out of hospital 7 (12.2)
Table 4.
Outcomes of the patients according to periods of transplantation
  Period I (∼1990) Period II (1991∼2000) Period III (2001∼) P value
No. of transplant patients 163 361 261  
No. of deceased donor transplantation (%) 0 (0.0) 73 (20.2) 95 (36.4) <0.000
History of previous graft (%) 5 (3.1) 22 (6.1) 37 (14.2) <0.000
Immunosuppressant (%)        
Tacrolimus 0 (0.0) 58 (16.1) 228 (87.4) <0.000
Mycophenolate mofetil 0 (0.0) 120 (33.2) 254 (97.3) <0.000
Triple immunosuppression 50 (30.7) 162 (44.9) 256 (98.1) <0.000
No. of graft failure (%) 129 (79.1) 172 (47.6) 28 (10.7) <0.000
No. of graft failure within 1 yr 10 (6.1) 15 (4.2) 8 (3.1) ns
No. of graft failure within 5 yrs 61 (37.4) 73 (20.2) 20 (7.7) <0.000
Follow-up duration, mos 96.8±77.5 99.7±60.2 62.7±27.6 <0.000

Abbreviation: ns, not significant.

Table 5.
Changes of causes of graft failure according to periods of transplantation
  Period I (∼1990) Period II (1991∼2000) Period III (2001∼) ) P value
No. of transplant patients 163 361 261  
No. of graft failure 129 (79.1) 172 (47.6) 28 (10.7) <0.000
Major causes of graft failure (%)        
Chronic allograft nephropathy 84 (65.1) 78 (45.4) 9 (32.1) <0.000
Acute rejection 7 (5.4) 7 (4.1) 3 (10.7) ns
Patient death 16 (12.4) 33 (19.2) 9 (32.1) 0.034
Posttransplant glomerulonephritis 13 (10.1) 27 (15.7) 2 (7.2) ns
Non compliance 7 (5.4) 16 (9.3) 3 (10.7) ns
Others 2 (1.6) 11 (6.3) 2 (7.2) ns

Abbreviation: ns, not significant.

Table 6.
Comparison of demographic characteristics: patients with functioning graft vs. with failed graft
Parameters Patients with functioning graft (n=456) Patients with failed graft (n=329) P value
Recipient, age, yr 37.3±11.4 34.5±11.0 0.001
Sex, male (%) 282 (61.8) 230 (69.9) 0.023
Donor, age, yr 37.3±11.8 39.2±13.2 0.036
Sex, male (%) 268 (59.0) 177 (53.8) ns
Deceased donor (%) 124 (27.2) 44 (13.4) <0.000
History of previous 50 (11.0) 14 (4.3) 0.002
transplantation (%)      
Major immunosuppressant (%)   <0.000
Cyclosporine 207 (45.4) 274 (83.3)  
Tacrolimus 244 (54.6) 44 (16.7)  
Adjuvant immunosuppressant (%)    
Azathioprime 29 (6.4) 80 (24.6) <0.000
Mycophenolate mofetil 305 (66.9) 69 (21.0) <0.000
Triple immunosuppression 333 (73.0) 138 (41.9) <0.000
(%)      
Follow up duration, mo 98.3±60.7 70.8±51.9 <0.000

Abbreviation: ns, not significant.

Table 7.
Risk factors for graft failure by binary regression analysis
Parameters P value Exp (B) 95% confidence interval
Lower Upper
Recipient age ns 1.007 0.991 1.023
Sex (reference: male) ns 0.907 0.626 1.313
Donor age 0.004 1.017 1.005 1.033
Deceased donor ns 0.693 0.424 1.133
Frequency of transplantation ns 0.608 0.284 1.302
(reference: single transplantation)        
Immunosuppressive drug        
Tacrolimus 0.028 0.577 0.353 0.944
Mycophenolate mofetil 0.000 0.360 0.209 0.620
Dual immunosuppression 0.002 4.318 1.682 11.085
Period of transplantation (reference: period III) 0.000 0.273 0.186 0.401

Abbreviation: ns, not significant.

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