The role of splenectomy in the setting of refractory humoral rejection after kidney transplantation.
Living donor kidney transplantation remains the best option for presensitized recipients to avoid excessive time on the waiting list. However, the possibility for a positive crossmatch with a potential living donor is high. A desensitization protocol may be required to avoid antibody-mediated rejection (AMR). Current protocols are not always effective to prevent AMR and in some cases fail to convert subjects to a negative crossmatch before transplantation. From March 2006 to January 2011, the 11 presensitized patients who displayed AMR after living donor kidney transplantation underwent splenectomy as a rescue procedure due to failure of standard rejection treatments. Splenectomy was considered to be effective in six recipients who normalized their renal function without the need for other immunomodulating therapy. Our analysis suggested that splenectomy can be successfully performed alone or in association with other treatments like bortezomib or rituximab to overcome severe AMR.
Division of Transplantation, Department of Surgery, University of Illinois at Chicago, Chicago, Illinois, USA.
I
I
Tzvetanov
M
M
Spaggiari
H
H
Jeon
R G
RG
Roca
C
C
Bhati
J
J
Oberholzer
E
E
Benedetti
D000328:Adult; D002641:Chicago; D003888:Desensitization, Immunologic; D005260:Female; D006084:Graft Rejection / Q000188:drug therapy / Q000276:immunology / Q000601:surgery*; D006085:Graft Survival; D006648:Histocompatibility; D006801:Humans; D056724:Immunity, Humoral; D007166:Immunosuppressive Agents / Q000627:therapeutic use; D016030:Kidney Transplantation / Q000009:adverse effects / Q000276:immunology*; D019520:Living Donors; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D010956:Plasmapheresis; D012189:Retrospective Studies; D012720:Severity of Illness Index; D013156:Splenectomy; D013997:Time Factors; D016896:Treatment Outcome
D007166:Immunosuppressive Agents