Long-term results of kidney transplantation from HCV-positive donors.

Abstract Background Due to the shortage of organs for transplantation, procurement of kidneys from marginal donors is inevitable. Not infrequently, these donors are infected with hepatitis C virus (HCV). Aim We sought to determine the effect of transplanting kidneys from anti-HCV–positive donors to anti-HCV–positive recipients. Patients and Methods Among 765 procedures between 1994 and 2006, 259 kidney recipients were anti-HCV–positive, including 60 who received kidneys from anti-HCV–positive donors (HCV + /HCV + group) and the others, from seronegative donors (HCV − /HCV + group). The control group of 506 seronegative recipients received kidneys from seronegative donors (HCV − /HCV − group). All kidneys from anti-HCV–positive donors were preserved with machine perfusion. We investigated recipient liver function tests (LFTs; alanine aminotrasferase, aspartate aminotransferase; alkaline phosphatase, and bilirubin), graft survival, and patient survival. Results No significant difference was observed between the groups among the biochemistry results (LFTs, creatinine at 5 years). No significant differences, were observed in patient survival, graft survival, or number of patients returning to dialysis. Conclusion Transplantation of kidneys from HCV-positive donors to HCV-positive recipients did not influence long-term liver function, or long-term renal allograft function. This strategy enhances the availability of transplantation as means of end-stage renal disease treatment.