title: Amelioration of chronic renal allograft dysfunction in cyclosporine-treated patients by addition of azathioprine.
abstract: Management of chronic renal allograft dysfunction in cyclosporine-prednisone treated renal allograft recipients remains problematic. We therefore initiated a protocol of azathioprine addition (1.0-1.5 mg/kg/day) to ongoing CsA/Pred therapy. Three groups were treated. Group A (n = 21) had chronic progressive renal dysfunction (serum creatinine greater than or equal to 2.5 mg/dl or more than 15% above baseline) four or more months after transplantation. Group B (n = 8) had frequent or severe rejection episodes occurring despite adequate CsA levels. Group C (n = 7) had constitutional side effects of CsA with or without renal dysfunction persisting despite drug taper or financial difficulty in affording CsA. Aza was initiated 17.8 +/- 2.8 months after transplantation in group A, the mean serum creatinine having risen from 2.55 +/- 27 mg/dl to 3.04 +/- .20 mg/dl (P = .07) over the six months preceding Aza initiation, despite stable and low therapeutic range HPLC whole-blood CsA levels (118 +/- 10 ng/ml vs. 133 +/- 11 ng/ml, P = NS). Renal function declined at a rate of -0.20 +/- .06 Cr1/year in the six-month period before addition of Aza, and then improved at a rate of 0.09 +/- .04 Cr-1/year after addition of Aza (P = .002). These changes in renal function occurred without a decrease in CsA levels (118 +/- 10 six months before Aza vs. 126 +/- 26 six months after Aza, P = NS). In group B Aza was initiated at 58 +/- 8 days after transplantation when mean sCr was 3.56 +/- .29 mg/dl and mean CsA level was 222 +/- 17 ng/ml. At least follow-up 12.7 +/- 2.0 months after addition of Aza, all group B grafts were functioning, mean sCr was 2.69 +/- .31 mg/dl (P = .09 compared with baseline), and mean CsA level was 128 +/- 34 ng/ml (P = .07 compared with baseline). Group C patients had addition of Aza at 43 +/- 19 months after transplantation when mean sCr was 2.97 +/- .60 and mean CsA level was 125 +/- 30 ng/ml; addition of Aza had no influence on the rate of decline in renal function in this group. Of these 36 patients, 6 received therapy for acute rejection over the entire follow-up period of 12.3 +/- 1.4 months after addition of Aza; 4 of these retain graft function. Infectious complications consisted of 2 urinary tract infections, 1 bacterial pneumonia, and one case of otitis media.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 400 WORDS)
authors.affiliation: Department of Internal Medicine, University of Michigan Medical Center, Ann Arbor 48109.
authors.forename: L L
authors.initials: LL
authors.lastname: Rocher
authors.forename: R J
authors.initials: RJ
authors.lastname: Hodgson
authors.forename: R M
authors.initials: RM
authors.lastname: Merion
authors.forename: R D
authors.initials: RD
authors.lastname: Swartz
authors.forename: S
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Keavey
authors.forename: J G
authors.initials: JG
authors.lastname: Turcotte
authors.forename: D A
authors.initials: DA
authors.lastname: Campbell
mesh_terms: D000206:Actuarial Analysis; D000328:Adult; D001379:Azathioprine / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D003404:Creatinine / Q000097:blood; D003524:Cyclosporins / Q000097:blood / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D004359:Drug Therapy, Combination; D005260:Female; D005500:Follow-Up Studies; D006084:Graft Rejection / Q000187:drug effects; D006085:Graft Survival / Q000187:drug effects*; D006801:Humans; D007668:Kidney / Q000503:physiopathology; D016030:Kidney Transplantation; D008297:Male; D011241:Prednisone / Q000627:therapeutic use; D014184:Transplantation, Homologous / Q000191:economics
chemical_list: D003524:Cyclosporins; D003404:Creatinine; D001379:Azathioprine; D011241:Prednisone