title: Cholelithiasis in patients on the kidney transplant waiting list.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To evaluate the prevalence of cholecystopathy in chronic renal patients awaiting kidney transplants.
  
  
  BACKGROUND
  The prevalence and management of cholelithiasis in renal transplant patients is not well established.
  
  
  METHODS
  A total of 342 chronic renal failure patients on the waiting list for a kidney transplant were studied. Patients were evaluated for the presence of cholelithiasis and related symptoms, previous cholecystectomies and other abdominal surgeries, time on dialysis, and general data (gender, age, number of pregnancies, and body mass index).
  
  
  RESULTS
  Cholelithiasis was found in 41 out of 342 patients (12%). Twelve of these patients, all symptomatic, had previously undergone cholecystectomies. Five out of 29 patients who had not undergone surgery were symptomatic. Overall, 17 patients (41.5%) were symptomatic. Their mean age was 54 (range 32-74) years old; 61% were female, and their mean body mass index was 25.4. Nineteen (76%) out of 25 women had previously been pregnant, with an average of 3.6 pregnancies per woman.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  The frequency of cholelithiasis was similar to that reported in the literature for the general population. However, the high frequency of symptomatic patients points toward an indication of routine pre-transplant cholecystectomy to avoid serious post-transplant complications.
authors.affiliation: Disciplina de Cirurgia do Aparelho Digestivo, Faculdade de Medicina da Universidade de São Paulo, São Paulo, Brazil.
authors.forename: André Thiago Scandiuzzi
authors.initials: AT
authors.lastname: Brito
authors.forename: Luiz Sergio
authors.initials: LS
authors.lastname: Azevedo
authors.forename: Willian Carlos
authors.initials: WC
authors.lastname: Nahas
authors.forename: André Siqueira
authors.initials: AS
authors.lastname: Matheus
authors.forename: José
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Jukemura
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D015992:Body Mass Index; D002769:Cholelithiasis / Q000453:epidemiology*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007676:Kidney Failure, Chronic / Q000150:complications*; D016030:Kidney Transplantation; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D015995:Prevalence; D012189:Retrospective Studies; D017678:Sex Distribution; D014850:Waiting Lists
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