Macrovascular events after kidney-pancreas transplantation in type 1 diabetic patients

There are few studies concerning the effect of kidney-pancreas transplantation (KPTx) on the progression of macrovascular disease in type 1 diabetic patients. The aim of our study was to retrospectively evaluate the incidence of macrovascular events after functioning KPTx.

We studied 146 patients (96 men and 50 women) who had undergone KPTx from February 1983 to September 2001, with more than 1 year of evolution of both grafts functioning normally. The mean follow-up of the patients after KPTx was 5+/-3 years.

Before KPTx, 29 patients displayed 42 macrovascular events. During the follow-up after transplantation, intermittent claudication remained in 25 patients (86.2%) with 11 new macrovascular events (1 stroke, 1 angina pectoris, 1 myocardial infarction, and 8 minor amputations) in 10 patients (34%). Among the 117 patients without antecedent macrovascular events prior to KPTx, 38 (32.5%) experienced a total of 63 macrovascular events (26 intermittent claudication, 4 stroke, 8 angina pectoris, 7 myocardial infarction, 11 minor amputations, and 7 major amputations). Before transplantation, 88.4% of the patients presented with hypertension, 42.5% a history of smoking, and 14.4% previous treatment for dyslipidmia. After transplantation, we observed an important reduction in the percentage of patients with hypertension (48.6%) and smoking (25.5%), without a change in the prevalence of dyslipemia (19.9%). Hypertension after transplantation was clearly associated with the appearance or persistence of macrovascular events.

In our experience, 43% of the transplant recipients present with macrovascular events. It is important to note the elevated prevalence of cardiovascular risk factors in the patients who underwent KPTx.