[Short, medium and long-term follow-up of living donors]

Live-donor kidney transplants are being done since more than fifty years ago. In recent years, a marked increase in live donations is observed, as a result of the limited availability of organs from deceased donors. Also, the use of laparoscopic nephrectomy has contributed to increase live donations. A systematic review of the literature shows that short and long-term risks of morbidity and mortality of the donor are reasonably low. Even so, an increased incidence of high blood pressure and mild proteinuria has been reported. On the contrary, no detrimental effect on renal failure is observed and the incidence of long-term chronic renal failure is lower in the donor population when compared with the incidence observed in the general population. In any case, a regular follow-up of the donors is advisable in order to prevent or early detect those medical conditions that would represent a health risk, in particular those conditions that possibly will affect renal function: hypertension, diabetes, proteinuria and obesity. It would be also necessary to establish a nation-wide scientific registry, with prospective regular data collection, that will make possible a more accurate assessment of the long-term risk of uninephrectomy and early detection of new medical information that would contribute to redefine the risk of kidney donation or to establish new requisites in the donor evaluation protocols.