2016 Volume 4 Issue 2 Pages 190-195
【Objective】To evaluate the risk factors for mortality after kidney transplantation in recipients aged ≥ 60 years.【Patients and Methods】We performed 62 living donor kidney transplants in recipients aged ≥ 60 years at the National Chiba-East Hospital from April 2004 to December 2015. Recipients were divided into the survival (n＝49) and nonsurvival (n＝13) groups. Patients’ preoperative, intraoperative, and postoperative background factors were compared. Additionally, the groups were classified by the cause of death and survival time from the date of the operation to the date of death.【Results】The mean age at transplantation was 63.90±3.18 and 66.92±4.66 years, and the average period of hemodialysis was 3.35±3.42 and 5.94±4.80 years in the survival and non-survival groups, respectively, which were significantly different (p＝0.0079 and 0.0299, respectively). There were no significant differences in the other factors. Infectious diseases or cardiovascular system diseases were common causes of death, with most patients dying within 1 year.【Conclusions】Mortality risk factors in elderly recipients of living donor kidney transplantation were age at the time of transplantation and the period of hemodialysis. Long-term dialysis syndrome should be considered while performing a preoperative adaptation assessment and preoperative treatment. Moreover, the prevention of complications such as cardiovascular and infectious diseases during intensive follow-up in the first year after transplantation can lead to a significant decrease in mortality in elderly recipients of living donor kidney transplantation, thereby increasing the rate of the long-term graft survival in elderly people.
