Improving access to renal transplantation.
Kidney transplantation is the treatment of choice for most patients with end-stage renal disease (ESRD), with success rates greater than were envisioned as recently as a decade ago. Unfortunately this trend has created unprecedented demand for transplantable organs and new challenges for those desiring transplantation. This report is an overview of this changing landscape, with a focus on the clinical implications of the current process that culminates in renal transplantation. It also highlights potential solutions to overcome these newly recognized obstacles.
Gaston
Robert S
RS
Division of Nephrology, University of Alabama at Birmingham, Birmingham, Alabama 35294, USA. rgaston@uab.edu
D006297:Health Services Accessibility; D006301:Health Services Needs and Demand; D006650:Histocompatibility Testing; D006801:Humans; D007676:Kidney Failure, Chronic / Q000601:surgery*; D016030:Kidney Transplantation / Q000276:immunology; D018579:Patient Selection; D014481:United States; D014850:Waiting Lists