Neal Rowe

Donation after Cardiac Death Pediatric En Bloc Renal Transplantation

PURPOSE Use of small pediatric kidneys obtained from extremely young donors after cardiac death has been limited. This potential organ source remains under used by transplant teams. MATERIALS AND METHODS We reviewed all renal transplants at our institution from 2000 to 2013 to identify recipients of an en bloc pair of kidneys from deceased pediatric donors younger than 4 years. The outcomes of donation after cardiac death en bloc allografts were compared with neurological determination of death en bloc allografts. RESULTS A total of 21 recipients of en bloc renal allografts were identified, of which 4 organ pairs were obtained through donation after cardiac death. Mean ± SD donor age was 20.6 ± 11.6 months and weight was 12.4 ± 3.7 kg. Delayed allograft function occurred in 2 of 4 recipients of allografts obtained from donation after cardiac death en bloc and 3 of 17 recipients of allografts from neurological determination of death en bloc. One year after transplantation mean ± SD glomerular filtration rates were similar, at 80.7 ± 15.3 and 85.7 ± 33.4 ml/minute/1.73 m(2) in the cardiac and neurological allograft groups, respectively (difference not significant). Surgical complications occurred in 3 patients, and no allograft was lost to thrombosis. CONCLUSIONS We report successful transplantation of a small cohort of pediatric en bloc kidneys obtained through donation after cardiac death from donors younger than 4 years. Outcomes at 1 year are comparable to those in neurological determination of death en bloc allograft recipients.

Simultaneous pancreas-kidney transplantation: The role in the treatment of type 1 diabetes and end-stage renal disease

Type 1 diabetes mellitus (DM) is one of the most common and debilitating diseases to affect the world. Many patients are afflicted by microvascular and macrovascular complications, and succumb to end-stage renal disease (ESRD). Although dialysis and insulin therapy provides better glycemic control, it nonetheless significantly decreases a patients quality of life. Moreover, they cannot reverse ESRD or alleviate complications. Simultaneous pancreas-kidney (SPK) transplantation has revolutionized the way we manage type 1 DM; it provides a physiological means of achieving normoglycemia while rendering patients free of dialysis. Understanding this procedure is important because it is becoming a more common management strategy for patients with type 1 DM. In this review, we will begin with a brief summary of type 1 DM, followed by a comprehensive description of SPK procedure, including the history and technique. We will then present the outcomes of transplantation.

First Canadian experience with robotic single-incision pyeloplasty: Comparison with multi-incision technique.

INTRODUCTION We compared the outcomes of single-incision, robot-assisted laparoscopic pyeloplasty vs. multiple-incision pyeloplasty using the da Vinci robotic system. METHODS We reviewed all consecutive robotic pyeloplasties by a single surgeon from January 2011 to August 2015. A total of 30 procedures were performed (16 single:14 multi-port). Two different single-port devices were compared: the GelPort (Applied Medical, Rancho Santa Margarita, CA) and the Intuitive single-site access port (Intuitive Surgical, Sunnyvale, CA). RESULTS Patient demographics were similar between the two groups. Mean operating time was similar among the single and multi-port groups (225.2 min vs. 198.9 minutes [p=0.33]). There was no significant difference in length of hospital stay in either group (86.2 hr vs. 93.2 hr [p=0.76]). There was no difference in success rates or postoperative complications among groups. CONCLUSIONS Single-port robotic pyeloplasty is non-inferior to multiple-incision robotic surgery in terms of operative times, hospitalization time, success rates, and complications. Verifying these results with larger cohorts is required prior to the wide adoption of this technique. Ongoing objective measurements of cosmesis and patient satisfaction are being evaluated.