Horseshoe kidneys: an underutilized resource in kidney transplant.
OBJECTIVE
Although the number of patients awaiting renal transplant is rapidly increasing, the donor pool has remained relatively stable. Horseshoe kidneys, a common renal fusion anomaly, can provide a useful solution to the ever increasing gap between supply and demand.


METHODS
These kidneys can be transplanted, en bloc, into a single recipient or divided and transplanted into 2 recipients.


RESULTS
We report 2 cases of successful kidney transplants.


CONCLUSIONS
The first is a split horseshoe kidney, transplanted into a single recipient, and the second, a horseshoe kidney from a donor after cardiac death split and transplanted into a single recipient. The second case is the first reported case of a horseshoe kidney transplant from a donor after cardiac death. We also performed a review of the literature of horseshoe kidneys with the hope of raising awareness of the necessity and promise of such transplants.
Pontinen
Thomas
T
Department of Surgery, Albert Einstein Medical Center and Hahnemann University Hospital, Philadelphia, PA 19102, USA. pont0035@umn.edu
Khanmoradi
Kamran
K
Kumar
Anil
A
Kudsi
Hussam
H
Cheng Kung
Shiang
S
Chewaproug
Daranee
D
Zaki
Radi
R
Ortiz
Jorge
J
D000328:Adult; D003643:Death; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007668:Kidney / Q000002:abnormalities*; D007676:Kidney Failure, Chronic / Q000601:surgery*; D016030:Kidney Transplantation; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D014019:Tissue Donors; D016896:Treatment Outcome