Impact of terlipressin on renal graft function

To assess the effect of a bolus of terlipressin in brain-dead donors with shock refractory to norepinephrine, a retrospective study was conducted in a 16-bed intensive care unit of a university hospital. Twenty brain-dead donors were treated with norepinephrine within the study period. Nine of these donors developed persisting hypotension (MAP < 65 mmHg) not responding to fluid loading and high dose of norepinephrine. They were then treated with a single bolus of terlipressin (1 mg). This resulted in a MAP rise from 58 +/- 10 to 93 +/- 20 mmHg (P = 0.009). One month after transplantation, no differences were observed in serum creatinine levels of the recipients who received a renal transplant extracted from donors responding or not to norepinephrine (138 +/- 43 vs. 137 +/- 43 microM; P = 0.95). The liver function was similar in both groups. Within the limitations of this study, a single bolus of terlipressin in norepinephrine-resistant vasodilatory shock donors does not affect the renal and liver graft quality in the recipients.