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BJUBJU International1464-4096BJU International


90
3004
UROLOGICAL COMPLICATIONS OF RENAL TRANSPLANTATION
E.H. STREETER
et al.
10.1046/j.1464-4096.2002.03004.x
Original Article627634BEES SGML

BJU International (2002), 90, 627–634 doi:10.1046/j.1464-4096.2002.03004.x

The urological complications of renal transplantation: a series


of 1535 patients
E.H. STREETER*, D.M. LITTLE†, D.W. CRANSTON*† and P.J. MOR RIS†
*Department of Urology, and †Oxford Transplant Centre, Churchill Hospital, Oxford, UK

Objective To determine the incidence of urological com- were three deaths associated directly or indirectly with
plications of renal transplantation at one institution, urological complications. There was no association
and relate this to donor and recipient factors. with recipient age, cadaveric vs living-donor trans-
Patients and methods A consecutive series of 1535 renal plants, or cold ischaemic times before organ reimplan-
transplants were audited, and a database of donor and tation, although the donor age was slightly higher in
recipient characteristics created for risk-factor analy- cases of urinary leak. There was no association with
sis. An unstented Leadbetter-Politano anastomosis was kidneys imported via the UK national organ-sharing
the preferred method of ureteric reimplantation. scheme vs the use of local kidneys. The management of
Results There were 45 urinary leaks, 54 primary ureteric these complications is discussed.
obstructions, nine cases of ureteric calculi, three blad- Conclusion The incidence of urological complications in
der stones and 19 cases of bladder outlet obstruction at this series has remained essentially unchanged for
some time after transplantation. The overall incidence 20 years. The causes of these complications and tech-
of urological complications was 9.2%, with that for uri- niques for their prevention are discussed.
nary leak or primary ureteric obstruction being 6.5%. Keywords renal transplantation, complications, aeti-
One graft was lost because of complications, and there ology

unrelated donor transplants). All patients were followed


Introduction
up at the centre for at least 1 year after surgery. Data on
Major advances have been made over the last two decades the incidence and nature of urological complications were
in renal transplantation. While formal research pro- accumulated by retrospective case-note analysis.
grammes concentrate on the associated immunology Several operating surgeons were involved, of consultant
technical issues concerning the procedure have almost or specialist registrar grade. In all but three procedures
been obscured. Despite this, early graft failure is often for a Leadbetter-Politano ureteroneocystostomy was used,
technical reasons, and urological complications remain a involving the passage of the ureter through a submucosal
major source of morbidity and occasional mortality. The tunnel fashioned via a separate anterior cystostomy. Two
incidence of these complications is discussed, and causes cases required primary uretero-ureterostomy for a short
in their development evaluated. Recent advances in surgi- donor ureter. In one procedure the ureter was implanted
cal technique are noted with speculation about their into a bladder caecoplasty. Ureteric stents were used
possible effect for the future. rarely. A Foley catheter was used to drain the bladders of
all patients for at least 5 days after surgery. Daily serum
biochemistry was combined with careful clinical observa-
Patients and methods
tion to monitor graft function. In recent years it has
All cases of renal transplantation from the inception of our become standard practice to image all grafts by ultra-
unit in January 1975 to May 1998 were included in the sonography soon after surgery, usually in the first or
study; the series comprised 1535 consecutive renal trans- second day, to detect early signs of vascular or urological
plants, in 1292 patients (mean age 43.0 years at surgery, complications. This succeeds the former practice of imag-
range 11–75; male : female ratio of procedures 1.52 : 1, ing only in those with suspected graft dysfunction. All
with 1386 cadaveric transplants and 149 living-related or patients since 1982 have been treated with cyclosporin-
based immunosuppressive regimens. The 273 cases before
this were treated with a combination of azathioprine and
prednisolone, with high-dose prednisolone giving way to
Accepted for publication 26 July 2002 the current low-dose schedule in 1978.

© 2002 BJU International 627


628 E.H. STREETER et al.

For purposes of chronological comparison, data are sis. A summary of the position and timing of urinary leaks,
subdivided into 1975–86 (transplants 1–600), 1986–91 with the subsequent management, is shown in Table 1.
(transplants 601–1000), and 1991–98 (transplants Minor leaks occurred early in four cases and were
1001–1535). Data relating to the early part of the series treated with re-catheterization or with observation alone.
were published previously [1,2]. Three cases were managed initially with nephrostomy
insertion, although two of these proceeded to ureteric
reimplantation.
Results
Thirty-seven cases required surgery; two with direct
perforation of the ureter at procurement or implantation
Urinary leak
were sutured over. Three cases of vesico-ureteric leakage
There were 45 cases of urinary leak, with a further three in the absence of necrosis were treated with open stent
recurrent cases after a first operative repair. The median insertion. The degree of ureteric vascular compromise and
(range) time to onset was 29 (0–275) days, with all but necrosis dictated the use of reimplantation (eight cases),
two cases before 120 days. No grafts were lost, although uretero-ureterostomy (three), uretero-pyelostomy (15) or
one death could be directly attributed to subsequent sep- Boari flap (two). Two cases of leakage through the anterior

Table 1 Urinary leakage and obstruction; incidence and management

Location (n) Median (range) onset, days Treatment (n)

Leakage
No site identified (1) 14 Death from cardiac arrest (1)
Upper ureter/collecting system (5) 24 (0–49) Conservative (1)
Retrograde stent (1)
Open closure of defect in renal pelvis (1)
Open closure of renal pelvis and stent (1)
Uretero-ureterostomy (1)
Lower ureter (14) 21 (0–266) Nephrostomy (1)
Open drainage (1)
Open stent insertion (3)
Reimplantation (3)
Native ureteropyelostomy (2)
Uretero-ureterostomy (3)
Boari flap (1)
Bladder (6) 47 (0–357) Prolonged catheter drainage (3)
Percutaneous drainage (1)
Repair of vesical defect (2)
Ureteric necrosis (19) 35 (7–70) Reimplantation (5)
Native ureteropyelostomy (13)
Boari flap (1)
Obstruction
Upper/PUJ (10) 350 (35–1610) Antegrade stent (4)
Ureteric dilatation (1)
Pyeloplasty (1)
Division of obstructing vessel (1)
Native ureteropyelostomy (3)
Middle (10) 56 (1–1120) Antegrade stent (3)
Retrograde stent (1)
Open exploration (1) and stent (1)
Native ureteropyelostomy (2)
Uretero-ureterostomy (2)
Lower/VUJ (33) 110 (1–2800) Nephrostomy (2)
Antegrade stent (6)
Balloon dilatation (2)
Endoscopic excision of suture (1)
Native ureteropyelostomy (2)
Reimplantation (20)

© 2002 BJU International 90, 627–634


UROLOGICAL COMPLICATIONS OF RENAL TRANSPLANTATION 62 9

Table 2 The incidence of major complications with time


Transplant renal calculi
Ureteric obstruction, % There were six cases of obstructive ureteric calculi, with
Transplant Urinary Ischaemic Other three further cases not associated with obstruction.
number leak, % Total stricture causes The median (range) time to presentation was 150 (56–
1280) days. In the three unobstructive cases there was no
1–600 2.80 4.33 1.83 2.50
intervention. Of those with obstruction, one was treated
601–1000 2.00 2.50 2.25 0.25
with nephrostomy insertion followed by percutaneous
1001–1535 3.73 3.36 2.24 1.12
shock wave lithotripsy, three underwent successful percu-
Total 2.93 3.52 2.08 1.43 taneous nephrolithotomy and one proceeded to open
nephrolithotomy having failed the percutaneous
approach. In the final case both endoscopic and percuta-
neous attempts failed to remove the calculus, with graft
cystotomy required re-suturing of the bladder. Two cases function being lost, resulting in a nephrectomy.
required repeat reconstruction, with one leak persisting,
being treated with nephrostomy and antegrade stenting.
An additional operative failure was treated with ante- BOO
grade stenting. Table 2 shows the relative incidence of
urinary leakage over the study period. Seventeen patients developed significant BOO during the
course of the study, about half presenting within the first
month of transplantation. The causes were bladder neck
Primary ureteric obstruction stenosis (five), urethral strictures (four), BPH (five) and
Ureteric obstruction with no external compression undetermined (three). Patients were treated with bladder
occurred in 46 patients; there were two groups, i.e. those neck incision (five), optical urethrotomy (two) urethral
with an ischaemic origin, becoming clinically evident dilatation (two), TURP (five) or observation (three). There
usually at 1–18 months (32; median 6 months, range was one death after TURP caused by suprapubic catheter-
0.5–47), and those where anatomical or technical factors ization, urinary extravasation and sepsis.
were likely to have been more significant, evident in the
early recovery period (14; median 3 days, range 0–11).
There was no graft loss but there were two deaths, one Haematuria causing obstruction
caused by nephrostomy-related haemorrhage and the Six cases were recorded; of these, four occurred within
second with persistent stricturing, ureteric fistulation and 10 days of transplantation, causing hydronephrosis in two
sepsis. There were seven further cases of obstruction catheterized patients (days 2 and 3) and clot retention in
by lymphocoele (six) or obstructing blood vessels (one) in two patients (days 6 and 8). One patient with hydroneph-
the early part of the series. Table 2 shows the relative rosis required cystoscopic irrigation, whilst the others
incidence of ureteric obstruction over the study period. were treated conservatively.
The site and timing of obstruction again influenced There were two cases each of ureteric obstruction
management (Table 1). Antegrade stenting was used caused by haemorrhage after percutaneous needle biopsy
primarily in 19 cases, although five of these required sub- at 12 and 27 days, the latter associated with clot reten-
sequent operative procedures. Two distal strictures were tion. Both were treated with nephrostomy.
successfully percutaneously dilated, but an attempt to
remedy a pelvi-ureteric obstruction in the same way was
unsuccessful, requiring surgery. One case of a very limited
Neoplasia
stricture at the ureteric orifice was successfully managed
endoscopically via local excision. Two patients developed TCC of the bladder, both several
An open operation was required in 33 cases. The ureter years after transplantation. One had invasive disease, rap-
was unkinked in two cases and an overlying blood vessel idly metastasising and leading to death. The other had
divided in one. Proximal obstruction was treated by native superficial disease managed endoscopically. There was one
ureteropyelostomy (five) or pyeloplasty (one). Distal case of nephrogenic adenoma at 4.5 years, excised endo-
obstruction favoured ureteric reimplantation in the 20 scopically, recurring 2 years later and requiring two fur-
cases with a short segment stenosis, although one was ther cystoscopic resections. One patient who had had
later revised to a uretero-ureterostomy. Two further bilateral nephrectomies 3 and 4 years before transplanta-
uretero-ureterostomies and one uretero-pyelostomy were tion for metachronous adenocarcinomas had widespread
performed for longer or mid-ureteric stenoses. metastatic recurrence at 6 months and died.

© 2002 BJU International 90, 627–634


630 E.H. STREETER et al.

for the origin of the kidney, or cadaveric vs living donors.


Miscellaneous complications
The donors were slightly older in cases with urinary leaks
Bladder calculi were found on three occasions, at 8 than in the overall population. There was a paradoxically
months to 4 years after surgery; in all three cases the cal- shorter cold ischaemic time for ischaemic strictures.
culi were removed cystoscopically. One further patient
underwent cystoscopy for an ultrasonographically diag-
Discussion
nosed bladder mass, which was found to be a protruding
suture at the ureteric orifice, and which was excised Urological complications remain a major source of mor-
endoscopically. bidity and occasional mortality in renal transplantation,
despite a reduction in their incidence of at least half over
the last 30 years. Table 5 [3–17] shows a comparison of
Association of complications with donor factors
the present with contemporary series including > 400
The characteristics of the renal donors from the last transplants. Similarly, the graft loss and related mortality
8 years were analysed to ascertain whether causal factors has decreased, from 22% associated mortality and 54%
could be identified in the development of urological com- graft loss in 1981 [3] to 3.3% and < 1%, respectively,
plications. In particular, the origin of the kidney, i.e. reported here. The cause of these complications is of
locally retrieved vs imported via the UK organ-matching course multifactorial, and comparison of internationally
scheme, the donor’s age and the cold ischaemic time were published series shows wide variation among centres with
recorded (Table 3). There were no significant differences different practices. We consider possible causal factors

Table 3 Complications compared with donor factors

Variable Total (535) Leak (20), % Ischaemic stricture (12), %

Method of retrieval
Imported 149 4.7 3.4
Local 386 3.4 1.8
Donor
Cadaveric 55 5.4 1.8
Living-related 480 3.5 2.3
Mean (SD):
donor age, years 41.25 (14.7) 45.8 (11.0)* 40.3 (14.5)
cold ischaemic time, min 1517 (488) 1650 (598) 1064 (286)†

*P < 0.05; †P < 0.001.

Table 4 Comparative large series of renal transplants (1981–2001)

Ref. Year Number of transplants Vesico-ureteric anastomosis Ureteric stents Urinary leaks, % Ureteric obstruction, %

[3] 1981 1000 L-P No 5.6 7.5


[4] 1983 505 L-P No 2.2 1.0
[5] 1984 718 L-P No 8.9 3.3
[6] 1988 808 Extravesical No 1.4 0.9
[7] 1992 505 Transvesical nipple No 3.0 7.0
[8] 1992 1000 Extravesical No 0.9 0.3
[9] 1994 1200 Extra/transvesical N/A 4.0 2.5
[10] 1994 1298 Extravesical No N/A 3.1
[11] 1994 1016 L-P No 6.2 12.4
[12] 1996 1157 Paquin/extravesical No 1.5 1.3
[13] 1997 534 Extravesical No 5.6 6.3
[14] 1997 2084 L-P No 1.0 0.5
[15] 1998 600 Extravesical Mixed 2.5 1.7
[16] 2000 400 Extravesical Yes 0 0
[17] 2001 1200 Extravesical No 3.1 1.9
Present 2002 1535 L-P No 2.93 3.52

N/A, data not available; L-P, Leadbetter-Politano.

© 2002 BJU International 90, 627–634


UROLOGICAL COMPLICATIONS OF RENAL TRANSPLANTATION 631

and how changes in practice may reduce the rate of com- 1986–1998, although the present data showed no asso-
plications further. ciation between recipient age and complication rate.
An initial dramatic reduction in urological complica- There was no association with primary disease and
tions at our unit (16% in the first 207 cases vs 5% in the particularly no increased incidence of complications in
next 400) was attributed to the change from high- to diabetic patients.
low-dose steroid-based immunosuppressive regimens, and
the rate has changed little since then. As will be discussed,
Surgical
this may in fact mask an underlying trend towards safer
surgery. Technical considerations are of the utmost importance in
the incidence of urological complications. Disruption of
the ureteric normal blood supply at retrieval dictates that
Causal factors in urological complications
the remaining arterial and venous supply from the renal
Most urological complications are a result of technical vessels and lower polar branches must be preserved by
errors at retrieval or reimplantation, or failure of tissue minimal peri-ureteric dissection, especially in the so-
healing, influenced by ischaemia, inflammation, infec- called ‘golden triangle’ between the ureter, kidney and
tion, immunosuppression and antiproliferative agents, renal artery. Even so, the distal ureter is prone to
and the nutritional state of the recipient. Four main ischaemia. In living-related kidney donation, less aggres-
categories of factors are considered, i.e. donor, recipient, sive preservation of the blood supply may be possible. In
technical and medical. our unit 10% of transplants in this series were from living
donors, with 12.5% of potentially ischaemic complica-
tions involved this subgroup. Thus no link is confirmed.
Donor
This is in agreement with most large series of living-donor
The donor’s age and pre-existing comorbidity will influ- transplants, which report little effect on the incidence of
ence the potential function of the transplanted organs, urological complications [5,12].
and their ability to withstand the insult of ischaemia and Iatrogenic injury, the cause of two leaks in the present
reperfusion. Once a decision is made to offer organs for series, must be avoided during bench dissection. Minimiz-
transplantation, every effort must be made to preserve the ing warm ischaemic time is crucial. Dissection is carried
donor in an optimal state, with periods of hypotension, out on ice and the organ may be contained in an ice-filled
inotrope support or prolonged stay in the intensive treat- receptacle, e.g. a rubber glove, during the vascular anas-
ment unit all affecting the quality of the organs in the tomosis. This has been shown to maintain the core tem-
short- and possibly long-term. Retrieval surgery should perature of the kidney at < 10°C for protracted periods
thus proceed at the earliest appropriate opportunity. [20]. There was no association between cold ischaemic
The increasing pressure on transplant waiting lists will time or origin of the kidney (local vs from the national
undoubtedly lead to more marginal donors being consid- organ-sharing scheme) and the incidence of urological
ered. The eventual effect of this tendency has yet to be complication.
evaluated, although in the last 8 years, the donor age for Ureteric reimplantation is where most interest has been
the present cases of urinary leak is slightly higher than for focused in recent years, particularly for the type of vesico-
the whole population over the same period. Long-term ureteric anastomosis constructed and the use of prophy-
graft survival is strongly correlated with donor-recipient lactic ureteric stents. In nearly all cases in the present
HLA mismatch, e.g. in the data from the UNOS and series a Leadbetter-Politano submucosal tunnelled anas-
UKTSSA registries [18,19]. This is of course a result of a tomosis was used [21]. This has been suggested to lower
combination of acute and chronic rejection. Loughlin the incidence of ureteric reflux over conventional extra-
et al. [5] reported no correlation of urological complica- vesical procedures [21,22], particularly important if the
tions with HLA mismatch, but this series had an overall patient has recurrent UTIs. In the present series one case
rate higher (13.2%) than that of most recently published of symptomatic reflux was identified in a patient with
series. recurrent pyelonephritis, successfully treated with ure-
teric reimplantation. More recent modifications of the
extravesical approach, including a short muscular tunnel
Recipient
over the ureteric tip in an attempt to prevent reflux, have
The increasing availability of dialysis services and lead to the technique being shown in several series to pro-
improved medical management of chronic renal failure duce fewer ureteric obstructions [6,23–25]. Ischaemic
have lead to an increase in the age of recipients of renal strictures are probably reduced through the shorter
transplants in the present series, from a mean of length of ureter required, and extrinsic compression from
37.8 years in 1975–1986 to 46.7 years at operation in the submucosal tunnel is also avoided. The operating time

© 2002 BJU International 90, 627–634


632 E.H. STREETER et al.

is reduced and the need for an additional anterior cystot-


Medical management
omy, the source of six leaks in our series, is obviated. The
effect of this technique has been shown by two retrospec- Of major importance was the change to low-dose steroid
tive series comparing major complications before and after immunosuppression in the late 1970s, with the major
its adoption. Butterworth et al. [25] claimed a reduction complication rate decreasing from 16% in the first 207
from 12% to 2% in a series of 248 patients, and Thrasher cases to ≈ 7% since. Ongoing trials of immunosuppressive
et al. [24] from 9.4 to 3.7% over 320 cases. regimens are unlikely to produce this magnitude of effect.
Two retrospective series showed remarkable reductions As has been stated, no clear link has been shown between
in major urological complications by using prophylactic rejection and urological complications, and as long as the
ureteric stents (15% to 2.6%, and 13.6% to none, respec- complication is corrected, long-term function is preserved
tively) [26,27]. Several prospective randomized series Erectile dysfunction after transplantation is markedly
have since confirmed this [16,28–30]. The stents are less than in those with renal failure or dialysis, being
prone to breakage, especially if left for > 3 months, and halved from 47% to 22% between dialysis-dependent and
may also migrate. The material used in the manufacture successfully transplanted patients [33]. Ongoing problems
of the stent has been suggested to affect its lithogenicity are experienced often by patients on antihypertensive
[31], although the incidence of stent-associated calcifica- medication. The risk of erectile dysfunction after bilateral
tion may be reduced by their early removal at 2 weeks internal iliac transplant anastomoses has been estimated
after surgery [16]. The current policy in our unit (adopted at 65%, vs 10% for unilateral cases [34].
after the conclusion of this series) is to use stents in cases
where there is concern about ureteric ischaemia, com-
Urological malignancy
bined with an extravesical anastomosis; it is too early to
assess the effects of this recent change of practice. Urological malignancy, like all other forms of malignancy
In the last 535 patients the incidence of significant hae- in the transplant population, is in part a direct result of
maturia after transplantation, causing bladder outlet or immunosuppression. An incidence of 1.4% (relative risk
ureteric obstruction, is low, with four cases within the first 7–11 times) was reported by Schmidt et al. [35]. However,
10 days after surgery. Whether the source of the bleeding all but 13 of the 868 patients reported in that series
is from the cystotomy or elsewhere is unknown. All were received antilymphocyte or antithymocyte globulin at
managed conservatively with re-catheterization, one re- induction. This practice, thought to be of great impor-
quiring cystoscopic irrigation. Two cases of obstructing tance to the risk of developing malignancy, is very unusual
haematuria secondary to allograft biopsy required neph- in the present series. However, more recent data from the
rostomy insertion. All patients in our centre with cadav- Australia and New Zealand Dialysis and Transplant regis-
eric grafts undergo biopsies at 7 and 28 days, according to try confirmed a seven-fold increased risk of bladder and
protocol or at any sign of deterioration of renal function. renal cancer in transplant recipients [36].
Living-related transplant recipients do not undergo rou- There were two cases of TCC of the bladder in the
tine biopsy because of the lower incidence of acute rejec- present series; invasive bladder cancer must be treated
tion in this group. These two cases thus represent a very aggressively because of its propensity for rapid progres-
low overall rate of urological complication, but of course sion. For patients with superficial disease, management
do not include other cases of significant haemorrhage. involving transurethral tumour resection and close
The incidence of lower urinary tract obstruction requir- cystoscopic observation should be tailored according to
ing a procedure within 6 months of transplantation was standard risk factors such as the presence of high-grade
2%. Whether to evaluate the lower urinary tract of asymp- disease, multifocal invasion of the lamina propria or car-
tomatic patients before surgery, with the aim of reducing cinoma in situ. Conventional adjuvant therapy using BCG
symptomatic outlet problems afterward, is an area of con- is contraindicated in the immunosuppressed patient, thus
tention [32]. Again, whether to intervene beforehand, early aggressive surgical treatment should be considered.
with the risk of stricturing of the urethra after instrumen- A particular risk factor for RCC is acquired renal cystic
tation, without the regular passage of urine, is controver- disease, which occurs in up to half of patients on long-
sial [32]. Intermittent self-catheterization and instillation term dialysis, often causing pain through cystic haemor-
of antibiotic solution with normal voiding is suggested to rhage, haematuria and infection. It may be associated
circumvent this problem. Many investigators suggest with a 30-fold increased risk of RCC (especially of the pap-
waiting until after transplantation, with an early planned illary variant) in the pretransplant population. The cystic
urological procedure. In the case of a noncompliant blad- change often regresses after successful transplantation
der requiring reconstruction or augmentation, enterocys- but the relative risk of RCC in the transplant population is
toplasty is recommended before transplantation and the not thought to be high. There were no cases of RCC in the
risk of immunosuppression [32]. present series. Two prospective series of ultrasonography

© 2002 BJU International 90, 627–634


UROLOGICAL COMPLICATIONS OF RENAL TRANSPLANTATION 63 3

screening before transplantation reported incidences of 7 Kashi SH, Lodge JP, Giles GR, Irving HC. Ureteric complica-
occult tumours of 6% and 9% in patients with acquired tions of renal transplantation. Br J Urol 1992; 70: 139–43
renal cystic disease (1.5–2% in all patients presenting for 8 Gibbons WS, Barry JM, Hefty TR. Complications following
transplantation) [37,38], but no survival benefit has been unstented parallel incision extravesical ureteroneocys-
tostomy in 1,000 kidney transplants. J Urol 1992; 148: 38–
shown by screening. Our current practice is not to screen
40
for the condition but to investigate urological symptoms
9 Benoit G, Blanchet P, Moukarzel M et al. Surgical complica-
according to standard practice. tions in kidney transplantation. Transplant Proc 1994; 26:
The incidence of prostate cancer after renal transplan- 287–8
tation has probably been underestimated because there is 10 Keller H, Noldge G, Wilms H, Kirste G. Incidence, diagnosis,
little screening. This may be of increasing importance and treatment of ureteric stenosis in 1298 renal transplant
with an ageing transplant population and the increasing patients. Transpl Int 1994; 7: 253–7
longevity of grafts. The natural history of the disease in 11 Rigg KM, Proud G, Taylor RM. Urological complications fol-
this population is unknown, especially important as the lowing renal transplantation. A study of 1016 consecutive
low serum testosterone levels often seen with chronic transplants from a single centre. Transpl Int 1994; 7: 120–6
renal failure may be returned to normal with good renal 12 Koga S, Tanabe K, Yagisawa TT, Toma H. Urological compli-
cations in renal transplantation. Transplant Proc 1996; 28:
graft function. The relative benefits of various treatment
1472–3
methods are likely to remain uncertain amongst trans-
13 Cimic J, Meuleman EJ, Oosterhof GO, Hoitsma AJ. Urological
plant patients, and thus with no evidence to the contrary, complications in renal transplantation. A comparison
they should be treated according to standard guidelines. between living-related and cadaveric grafts. Eur Urol 1997;
Men age > 50 years, who may have no urinary symptoms 31: 433–5
if oliguric, should be considered for a DRE and serum PSA 14 Makisalo H, Eklund B, Salmela K et al. Urological complica-
test before transplantation. tions after 2084 consecutive kidney transplantations. Trans-
plant Proc 1997; 29: 152–3
15 Junjie M, Jian X, Lixin Y, Xiwen B. Urological complications
Conclusion and effects of double-J catheter in ureterovesical anastomosis
The major urological complication rate was 6.5% over the after cadaveric kidney transplantation. Transplant Proc 1998;
first 1535 cases of renal transplantation at our centre, and 30: 3013–4
has remained constant for about the last 20 years. Causal 16 Kumar A, Verma BS, Srivastava A, Bhandari M, Gupta A,
Sharma R. Evaluation of the urological complications of
factors were identified and possible changes in practice
living related renal transplantation at a single center during
suggested, the results of which will be apparent over the
the last 10 years: impact of the Double-J stent. J Urol 2000;
next decade. With increasing experience of minimally 164: 657–60
invasive endoscopic and uroradiological techniques, 17 El-Mekresh M, Osman Y, Ali-El-Dein B, El-Diasty T, Ghoneim
the management of complications may be set to change MA. Urological complications after living-donor renal trans-
simultaneously. plantation. BJU Int 2001; 87: 295–306
18 Cecka JM. The UNOS Scientific Renal Transplant Registry.
Clin Transpl 1998: 1–16
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