There is some controversy about the safety of renal transplantation in patients with an augmentation cystoplasty. The purpose of this study is to assess the early and long-term results of renal transplantation in 6 patients who underwent augmentation cystoplasty to correct bladder dysfunction. Methods: We retrospectively reviewed the surgical outcome of renal transplants in 6 recipients with augmentation cystoplasty including one ileal conduit. The etiology of bladder dysfunction was neurogenic bladder with detrusor hyperreflexia (4 pediatric patients) and renal tuberculosis (2 adult patients). Augmentation cystoplasty was performed before transplantation in all patients. The bowel segments used in the augmentation cystoplasty included stomach in 2 (including one revision case with ileum), ileum in 3, ileocecal segments in 1, and sigmoid colon in 1 patients. The mean patient`s age at transplantation was 25.5 years. Four transplants were from living donors. The donor ureter was anastomosed to ileal conduit in 1, native bladder in 2, and the bowel segment in 3 patients. Results: All transplanted kidneys were functioning at a mean follow-up of 103 months (range 5 to 220). The mean serum creatinine level was 1.0 mg/dl (range 0.7 to 1.8). Acute rejection was diagnosed in protocol biopsy in one patient without graft function deterioration. Four patients admitted for febrile urinary infection during the follow up periods. Conclusions: Augmentation cystoplasty is a safe and effective method to restore the renal function in patients who have noncompliant bladders. Renal transplantation can be performed safely after augmentation cystoplasty. (J Korean Soc Transplant 2008;22:220-225)
Over the last two decades, newer immunosuppressive agents have been introduced in the field of solid organ transplantation, and provided better graft and patient outcome. A wider range of immunosuppressants available to transplant physicians have resulted in improved therapeutic strategies to offer the combinations of medications with non-overlapping toxicities and more suitable immunosuppression. However, only a few clinical trials of new immunosuppressants have been conducted in pediatric patients. This review will discuss the cutting-edge strategy of immunosuppression in children and the current status of new immunosuppressive agents in pre- and post-transplant management to prevent kidney allograft rejection.
Cardiovascular disease is the most common cause of death in patients with diabetes mellitus (DM). In particular, the focus of many studies has been on ischemic heart disease, as it is a eading cause of death in diabetic patients. However, independent of coronary artery disease, DM can also lead to cardiac structural and functional changes, supporting the presence of diabetic cardiomyopathy. The pathologic mechanismin the development of diabetic cardiomyopathy is multifactorial including metabolic disturbance, myocardial fibrosis, microvascular disease, and autonomic dysfunction. Functionally, diabetic patients have a higher prevalence of LV (left ventricle) diastolic dysfunction. Because most diabetic patients with early myocardial disease have a wide spectrum of diastolic dysfunction at rest, assessment of LV functional reserve during exercise is helpful for early identification of myocardial dysfunction. Recent research has demonstrated that LV diastolic functional reserve (DFR) assessed by diastolic stress echocardiography was significantly reduced in patients with DM, compared with a control group, suggesting DFR might be an early indicator of diabetic cardiomyopathy. Glycemic control might be the most important and basic therapeutic strategy for preventing the development of diabetic cardiomyopathy. However, more extensive studies are needed to garner further evidence of preventive and therapeutic strategies of diabetic cardiomyopathy. (Korean Diabetes J 33:9-12, 2009)