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Single Port Donor Nephrectomy
Published on: March 12, 2011
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Surgical Drains After Laparoscopic Donor Nephrectomy: Needed or Not?
Haydar Celasin1, Akın Fırat Kocaay2, Sanem Guler Cimen3
1Department of General Surgery, Faculty of Medicine, Lokman Hekim University, Ankara, Turkey.
Annals of Transplantation
|September 29, 2020
Summary
Routine surgical drains after laparoscopic donor nephrectomy (LDN) offer no significant benefits. This study found no difference in recovery, hospital stay, or complication rates between donors with or without drains, questioning the necessity of this practice.
Area of Science:
- Nephrology
- Surgical Innovation
- Transplant Surgery
Background:
- Prophylactic drain placement is common after laparoscopic donor nephrectomy (LDN) but lacks evidence of benefit.
- This study investigates the impact of drains on donor recovery and outcomes.
Purpose of the Study:
- To evaluate the effect of surgical drain placement on recovery, length of hospital stay, and complication rates in live kidney donors undergoing LDN.
Main Methods:
- Retrospective analysis of 272 live donor nephrectomies (2010-2017) at a single institution.
- Comparison of outcomes between donors with (n=156) and without (n=113) surgical drains.
- Data analyzed included surgical time, blood loss, complications, and hospital stay.
Main Results:
- No significant differences were observed in mean surgical time, estimated blood loss, or length of hospital stay between the drain and no-drain groups.
- The overall complication rate was similar in both groups, with 17 patients experiencing postoperative complications.
- Postoperative creatinine levels also showed no significant difference.
Conclusions:
- Surgical drain placement in laparoscopic donor nephrectomy is not supported by significant evidence from this single-center study.
- The findings suggest that routine drain use may not be justified, as it did not improve key patient outcomes.
