Weight Gain After Simultaneous Kidney and Pancreas Transplantation

Excessive weight (EW) gain is common after solid organ transplantation, but there is little information concerning obesity after pancreas transplantation. The study goal was to characterize EW gain after kidney-pancreas (KP) transplantation.

This was a retrospective single-center review of 100 KP recipients transplanted between September 2007 and June 2015.

The median percent weight gain for all recipients at 1 year posttransplant was 10% (interquartile range, 2.7%-19.3%) of baseline weight. EW gain, defined as greater than or equal to a 19% 1-year increase in weight, included all recipients (n = 26) above the upper limit of interquartile range for weight gain at 1 year. In multivariate analysis, recipient age <40 years, the use of tacrolimus/mammalian target of rapamycin immunosuppression, and an acute rejection event were independent risk factors for EW gain. At a mean follow-up of 43±23 months, there was no difference in patient or graft survival between the EW and non-EW cohorts. Although mean hemoglobin A1c levels between groups were equivalent, the EW versus non-EW cohort displayed a significant increase in mean insulin levels and a trend towards higher C-peptide levels. Criteria for posttransplant metabolic syndrome was met in 34.6% of EW versus 17.6% of non-EW cohorts (P = 0.07).

At intermediate-term follow-up, EW gain after KP transplantation was not associated with an increased risk of death or graft loss, although there was a trend toward a greater risk of posttransplant metabolic syndrome. There may be a metabolic consequence of successful pancreas transplantation that results in EW gain in a proportion of recipients, leading to an increased risk of long-term cardiovascular complications.