The impact of pulmonary hypertension on early postoperative period after lung transplantation with particular emphasis on kidney function

Abstract

Abstract Background A special group of lung transplantation (LTx) recipients are patients diagnosed with pulmonary hypertension (PH) in the form of idiopathic pulmonary arterial hypertension (IPAH) or chronic lung diseases associated PH (CLD-PH). Acute left heart failure is a major complication observed in the early post-transplant period of patients with PH. To avoid post-transplant cardiac failure, the following measures may be implemented: use of intraoperative veno-arterial extracorporeal membrane oxygenation, administration of inotropic agents, a restrictive fluid management or use of continuous renal replacement therapy. Although, it remains unclear whether such a therapy affects long-term kidney function and patient survival. Purpose To analyze the influence of pulmonary hypertension diagnosis on early postoperative outcome including deterioration of renal function defined as the change in eGFR that occurred between baseline eGFR and the first and seventh day of observation post-LTx. Methods Retrospective data analysis of 79 patients undergoing lung transplantation in 2015-2018 in our institution with diagnosis of PH. Exclusion criterium was absence of 7 days observation post LTx or lack of PH diagnosis. The comparison of pre- and postoperative data was performed between IPAH (N=7) and CLD-PH (N=43) patients. Results We found differences in preoperative serum creatinine levels between IPAH and CLD-PH group (109,5 umol/l (70-126) vs 62,3 umol/l (49,3-73,4), respectively), p<0.05. The greatest decline of eGFR in the early postoperative period was demonstrated on day 7 in both groups (ΔeGFR=42,2±6,7 for CLD-PH group and 56,5±9,8 for IPAH group). Patients did not differ according to age, sex and BMI values. In IPAH group operation tend to last longer (657,9±78,2 min vs 539,6±111,6 min, p<0.05), all of them were performed with the use of cardiopulmonary bypass. All patients from IPAH group and 95,6% from CLD-PH group received inotropic support during LT procedure and early postoperative days. Duration of mechanical ventilation was statistically shorter among CLD-PH patients (2,9 days (0,8-1,4) vs 6,1 days (3,3-39), p<0.001). Conclusion It seems to be probable that pulmonary hypertension could be significant risk factor of kidney deterioration after lung transplantation. Identification of factors modifying renal insufficiency development in lung transplant recipients needs further investigations.