title: Alemtuzumab pre-conditioning with tacrolimus monotherapy in pediatric renal transplantation.
abstract: We employed antibody pre-conditioning with alemtuzumab and posttransplant immunosuppression with low-dose tacrolimus monotherapy in 26 consecutive pediatric kidney transplant recipients between January 2004 and December 2005. Mean recipient age was 10.7 +/- 5.8 years, 7.7% were undergoing retransplantation, and 3.8% were sensitized, with a PRA >20%. Mean donor age was 32.8 +/- 9.2 years. Living donors were utilized in 65% of the transplants. Mean cold ischemia time was 27.6 +/- 6.4 h. The mean number of HLA mismatches was 3.3 +/- 1.3. Mean follow-up was 25 +/- 8 months. One and 2 year patient survival was 100% and 96%. One and 2 year graft survival was 96% and 88%. Mean serum creatinine was 1.1 +/- 0.6 mg/dL, and calculated creatinine clearance was 82.3 +/- 29.4 mL/min/1.73 m(2). The incidence of pre-weaning acute rejection was 11.5%; the incidence of delayed graft function was 7.7%. Eighteen (69%) of the children were tapered to spaced tacrolimus monotherapy, 10.5 +/- 2.2 months after transplantation. The incidence of CMV, PTLD and BK virus was 0%; the incidence of posttransplant diabetes was 7.7%. Although more follow-up is clearly needed, antibody pre-conditioning with alemtuzumab and tacrolimus monotherapy may be a safe and effective regimen in pediatric renal transplantation.
authors.affiliation: University of Pittsburgh-Thomas E Starzl Transpl Institute - Surgery-Division of Transplantation, Pittsburgh, PA, USA. shapiror@upmc.edu
authors.forename: R
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Shapiro
authors.forename: D
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Ellis
authors.forename: H P
authors.initials: HP
authors.lastname: Tan
authors.forename: M L
authors.initials: ML
authors.lastname: Moritz
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Basu
authors.forename: A N
authors.initials: AN
authors.lastname: Vats
authors.forename: L K
authors.initials: LK
authors.lastname: Kayler
authors.forename: E
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Erkan
authors.forename: C G
authors.initials: CG
authors.lastname: McFeaters
authors.forename: G
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: James
authors.forename: M J
authors.initials: MJ
authors.lastname: Grosso
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Zeevi
authors.forename: E A
authors.initials: EA
authors.lastname: Gray
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Marcos
authors.forename: T E
authors.initials: TE
authors.lastname: Starzl
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000074323:Alemtuzumab; D000911:Antibodies, Monoclonal / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D061067:Antibodies, Monoclonal, Humanized; D000912:Antibodies, Neoplasm / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D002648:Child; D002675:Child, Preschool; D004305:Dose-Response Relationship, Drug; D004359:Drug Therapy, Combination; D006084:Graft Rejection / Q000276:immunology / Q000517:prevention & control*; D006085:Graft Survival / Q000276:immunology; D006801:Humans; D007165:Immunosuppression Therapy / Q000379:methods; D007166:Immunosuppressive Agents / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D007223:Infant; D007668:Kidney / Q000502:physiology; D016030:Kidney Transplantation / Q000276:immunology* / Q000379:methods; D016559:Tacrolimus / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D019172:Transplantation Conditioning / Q000379:methods*
chemical_list: D000911:Antibodies, Monoclonal; D061067:Antibodies, Monoclonal, Humanized; D000912:Antibodies, Neoplasm; D007166:Immunosuppressive Agents; D000074323:Alemtuzumab; D016559:Tacrolimus