Renography within 1 hour of renal transplantation: technical feasibility and clinical utility.
OBJECTIVE
Renographies obtained within 1 h of renal transplantation were studied prospectively to evaluate their technical feasibility and potential clinical impact on successful treatment of immediate posttransplantation complications such as arterial or venous thrombosis, which require prompt diagnosis and management.


METHODS
During December 1996 to December 1998, 127 renal transplants were performed. Ninety-four patients had complete renographic studies within 1 h of surgery. It was not possible to perform renography on 26 patients who were not sent to the Department of Nuclear Medicine within 1 h of transplant and 7 other patients who could not undergo a complete renogram because of their postoperative condition.


RESULTS
There was no complication attributed to transporting patients to the Department of Nuclear Medicine for these studies so soon after surgery. Of the 94 renographies obtained immediately following transplant surgery 46 were abnormal. However, when compared with the usual policy of obtaining baseline renograms between 12 and 72 h after surgery, treatment was changed for only 2 patients. Radionuclide renography within 1 h of transplant surgery was technically feasible.


CONCLUSIONS
Based on the results of this study the clinical utility of obtaining renography within 1 h posttransplant was minimal and hence we recommended that it should not be performed routinely but could be used on an individual basis when imminent intervention is highly likely.
Omar
Abdel Moneim
AM
Department of Nuclear Medicine, Organ Transplantation Center, Ministry of Health, Kuwait.
Al-Saeed
Tahani
T
Gawish
Alaa-Eldin
AE
Tailji
Sameera
S
Ibrahim
Ali Khalaf
AK
Collier
B David
BD
Elgazzar
Abdelhamid H
AH
D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D005240:Feasibility Studies; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D016030:Kidney Transplantation; D007730:Kuwait; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009336:Necrosis; D011184:Postoperative Period; D011866:Radioisotope Renography / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D011877:Radionuclide Imaging; D013996:Time and Motion Studies