Kidney Transplantation and Donor Artery Grafts

We aim to present the mid- and long-term results of single and multiple artery grafts of donor kidneys in kidney transplantation surgeries and their effects on graft survival according to our experience.

This is a single-center, observational, and descriptive study. Between December 2015 and July 2024, 112 patients with end-stage renal disease will undergo kidney transplantation with living or deceased donor kidney grafts. The transplanted patients were divided into 2 groups: Group 1, recipients of a single renal artery kidney graft (N = 95), and Group 2, recipients of multiple renal artery kidney grafts (N = 17). The groups were compared in terms of estimated glomerular filtration rates (months 1-3 and 12), delayed graft function, and graft survival. The data were statistically analyzed.

One hundred and eleven recipients were analyzed with all documented data. Graft function was compared between the 2 groups at 1, 3, and 12 months, and both were found to have similar results. Multiple donor artery graft anastomoses were found to have no effect on delayed graft dysfunction, higher risk of vascular injury, and biopsy-proven acute tubular necrosis.

Our study demonstrates that, in our experience, transplants with multiple donor artery grafts, like single donor renal artery grafts, are safe in the first years after transplantation.