title: The kidney transplantation program in Norway since 2000.
abstract: The overall number of transplants per million of population has increased to 60.8, which is the highest in Europe. However, the increase in kidney transplants in the new millennium has mainly been due to an increased deceased donation rate. The short waiting list for deceased donor kidney transplantation, less than 50 per million inhabitants, reflects the high transplant rate. In our opinion, renal transplantation is a safe and satisfactory treatment for patients with terminal kidney failure, including patients over the age of 70. The patient must fulfill the medical criteria for acceptance for transplantation. Ideally, the patient should receive a transplant before the commencement of dialysis, or as soon as possible after starting dialysis. Organs from old and suboptimal donors can be transplanted as single grafts with very good outcomes. Furthermore, functional capacity prior to organ retrieval is far more important than evaluation of kidney biopsies at the time of engraftment.
authors: Section of Nephrology, Department of Transplantation Medicine, Oslo University Hospital, Rikshospitalet, Norway. areisate@ous-hf.no
authors: Anna Varberg
authors: AV
authors: Reisaeter
authors: Aksel
authors: A
authors: Foss
authors: Anders
authors: A
authors: Hartmann
authors: Torbjørn
authors: T
authors: Leivestad
authors: Karsten
authors: K
authors: Midtvedt
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000367:Age Factors; D000368:Aged; D002648:Child; D002675:Child, Preschool; D046148:Donor Selection / Q000639:trends; D005260:Female; D006085:Graft Survival; D006801:Humans; D007223:Infant; D016030:Kidney Transplantation / Q000009:adverse effects / Q000401:mortality / Q000639:trends*; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009313:National Health Programs / Q000639:trends*; D009664:Norway; D015397:Program Evaluation; D016016:Proportional Hazards Models; D051437:Renal Insufficiency / Q000401:mortality / Q000601:surgery*; D018570:Risk Assessment; D012307:Risk Factors; D013997:Time Factors; D014019:Tissue Donors / Q000600:supply & distribution*; D009927:Tissue and Organ Procurement / Q000639:trends; D016896:Treatment Outcome; D014850:Waiting Lists; D055815:Young Adult