2015 Volume 3 Issue 1 Pages 86-91
【Background】Elderly patients are the fastest-growing population requiring dialysis. In 2013, 23.3％ of kidney transplant recipients were ≥60 years old, while only 9.3％ had been ≥60 years old in the previous five years. Older patients face higher mortality than younger patients. Older transplant recipients have significantly better survival than those who remain on waiting lists. This study evaluated graft and patient survival in ≥60-year-old recipients of kidney transplants.【Methods】We analyzed 246 adults who underwent kidney transplantation at our hospital during 2004〜 2014. Elderly (≥60 years, n＝52) and non-elderly (＜60 years, n＝194) patients were compared in terms of patient survival, graft survival, and post-transplant complications.【Results】The elderly and non-elderly groups did not differ significantly with regard to sex, donor age, kidney function, or the rates of infectious complications and acute rejection. Unrelated donor and cadaveric renal transplantation were significantly more common in elderly patients. Although patient and graft survival were poorer in the elderly group, death-censored graft survival did not differ between the two groups. For four of the five deaths in the elderly group, infection was the cause of death.【Conclusion】Kidney transplantation yielded equivalent results in elderly and non-elderly patients. It was suggested that kidney transplantation could be the best treatment for elderly patients with end-stage renal disease. Graft loss in older patients is primarily related to patient death. Aging lessens immunocompetence, thereby decreasing rejection. Consequently, infection is the main cause of mortality following transplantation. It is necessary to reconsider immunosuppressant regimens in elderly recipients.
