Upper gastrointestinal bleeding following renal transplantation

Upper gastrointestinal bleeding has been shown to be a common complication of renal transplantation and one which carries a significant risk of mortality. In a retrospective review of 200 consecutive renal transplants in 194 patients, we found an incidence of only 6 per cent and a mortality rate of 8.3 per cent. Allograft survival in this group of patients was 58 per cent. These results are the product of careful preoperative evaluation, close attention to the patients for early signs of bleeding, and aggressive diagnostic and therapeutic intervention at the first evidence of bleeding. We also report an association of hypercalcemia with post-transplant upper gastrointestinal bleeding, with cessation of bleeding after parathyroidectomy.