P atients with end-stage renal failure depend on either haemodialysis several times each week in a nearby dialysis center, or have to perform continuous ambulatory peritoneal dialysis (CAPD) several times a day. Progress in transplantation medicine as a result of improving immunosuppressive treatment and human lymphocyte antigen (I-ILA) matching in particular, made kidney transplantation more acceptable as a routine treatment for these patients. Today, results in kidney transplantation are rather impressive; over the years, the l-year graft survival rate for cadaveric donors reached 80% and the l-year patient survival rate is at 95%.’ A successful kidney transplantation results in improved quality of life and reduces the costs of treatment of end-stage renal failure. However, transplant numbers cannot keep up with the demand, and waiting lists are growing. Additionally, organ procurement rates are decreasing. Within Eurotransplant, the exchange organization of Austria, Belgium, Cermany, Luxembourg, and The Netherlands, kidney recovery rates decreased more than 10% in 1994 when compared with 1993.2 This results in a widening of the gap between organs available and patients awaiting kidney transplantation. This increasing organ shortage demands additional donor sources. The non-heart-beating (NHB) donor is a still relatively undeveloped source and can be very valuable in decreasing the discrepancy between demand and availability of kidneys for transplantation.3*4 With the introduction of brain death, ie, heart-