Use of preoperative embolization prior to Transplant nephrectomy

Area of Science:

• Nephrology
• Vascular Surgery
• Transplant Surgery

Background:

• Managing non-functional kidney transplants can be challenging, often requiring transplant nephrectomy (TN).
• TN can be associated with significant blood loss and complications.
• Preoperative embolization is explored as a method to mitigate these risks.

Purpose of the Study:

• To assess the impact of preoperative embolization on blood loss and transfusion rates during transplant nephrectomy (TN).
• To evaluate if embolization reduces complications associated with TN for failed kidney transplants.

Main Methods:

• Retrospective analysis of 16 patients undergoing non-emergent TN.
• Comparison between patients with preoperative embolization (ETN) and those without (NETN).
• Evaluation of estimated blood loss (EBL), transfusion rates, and hospital stay.

Main Results:

• Embolized patients (ETN) had significantly lower average EBL (143.9cc) compared to non-embolized (NETN) patients (621.4cc).
• Transfusion rates were similar, with 0.44 units in ETN versus 1.29 units in NETN.
• ETN patients had a longer average hospital stay (5.4 days) than NETN patients (3.9 days).

Conclusions:

• Preoperative embolization significantly decreases estimated blood loss during TN.
• Embolization does not significantly reduce the transfusion rate for TN.
• Longer hospitalization is associated with embolization, necessitating further research on overall complication reduction.