Kidney Transplant Outcomes Similar Regardless of Donor HCV Status

Hepatitis C in CKD: Challenges and Opportunities
Hepatitis C in CKD: Challenges and Opportunities
In a study, aviremic recipients of HCV-positive and HCV-negative deceased donor kidneys had similar 12-month transplant outcomes.

The hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection status of deceased kidney donors does not significantly affect 12-month transplant outcomes in aviremic recipients, according to data presented at the 2022 American Transplant Congress (ATC 2022) in Boston, Massachusetts.

Laura A. Binari, MD, of Vanderbilt University Medical Center in Nashville, Tennessee, and colleagues conducted a retrospective single-center study of 65 aviremic recipients of HCV-positive donor kidneys (cases). Investigators matched these recipients to a control group of 65 aviremic recipients of HCV-negative kidneys by age, race, gender, history of diabetes, kidney donor profile index (KDPI), and calculated panel reactive antibody (cPRA). The mean age of recipients was 55 years, mean KDPI 25%, mean cPRA 16%. Most recipients (69%) were male, 57% were White, and 95% had hypertension, and 45% had diabetes.

Of the 65 recipients of HCV-positive kidneys, 64 (98%) achieved a sustained virologic response with a first course of direct-acting antivirals at 12 weeks post-treatment.

Dr Binari’s team observed no significant difference between the case and control groups over the first post-transplant year in patient survival, death-censored graft survival, or rejection-free graft survival.  At about 1 year post-transplant, the mean estimated glomerular filtration rate was 58.6 and 56.3 mL/min/1.73 m2 in the case and control groups, respectively. Mean serum creatinine levels were 1.29 and 1.34 mg/dL, respectively. These differences were not statistically significant.

Reference

Binari LA, Forbes RC, Rega S, et al. Twelve month outcomes of kidney transplantation from hepatitis C viremic deceased donors to aviremic recipients. Presented at: ATC 2022; June 4-8, 2022, Boston, Massachusetts. Abstract 1646.

This article originally appeared on Renal and Urology News