Pediatric Renal Transplantation in the Jordanian Population: The Clinical Outcome Measures During Long-term Follow-up Period

Abstract

Recently, many international studies have suggested that pediatric patients from diverse ethnic origins confront unique challenges for transplantation. Data concerning the efficacy and safety of transplantation for various pediatric renal transplant populations remains limited and are often confounded by immunosuppressive protocols. In one study, we aimed to evaluate the short- and long-term outcomes of renal transplants in Jordanian children in comparison with groups of different nationalities. We retrospectively retrieved data for 34 Jordanian children who received kidney transplants from living donors between January 2003 and January 2009. Subsequently, we continued to follow-up with these selected patients at scheduled clinic visits to prospectively collect long-term data for a period of approximately 22 months±15 months. The patients included in this study ranged between 4 years and 19 years of age. The male/female ratio was 0.79. Glumerulonephritis (35.3%) was the most common cause of end-stage renal disease in the sample of this study; 23.5% had received a preemptive transplant. All patients also received triple immunosuppressive therapy, consisting of tacrolimus (TAC), prednisolone, and mycophenolate mofetil (n=26) or azathioprine (n=8). Furthermore, the rate of acute rejection episodes was lower in the sample of this study than the average rate of many previous studies. The patients' survival rate at 1 year, 2 years and 3 years posttransplant was nearly 100%. The corresponding graft survivals were 97.1%, 94.12% and 91.2% respectively. Beyond three years, one female patient died postgraft loss. This graft loss was mainly attributed to recurrent glomerulonephritis. Strikingly, the prevalence of posttransplant diabetes (PTD) and hypertension was higher than reported international figures. Other adverse events, such as infections, were manageable. The average result of pediatric renal transplantation in Jordan is more successful than the average results of this procedure in many developed countries, especially in terms of early graft function, acute rejection episodes as well as long-term patient and graft survivals. However, additional studies are needed to better characterize pharmacokinetic of TAC and to fully understand those factors that lead to an increased probability of developing conditions like PTD and hypertension.