Clinical Significance of Slow Recovery of Graft Function in Living Donor Kidney Transplantation

The clinical significance of slow recovery of graft function (SGF) in living donor kidney transplantation is unclear. We evaluated the incidence, risk factors, and clinical outcome of SGF in living donor transplantation. Three hundred ten living donor kidney recipients were included and categorized into immediate recovery of graft function (IGF; n=239) and SGF (n=71), according to estimated glomerular filtration rate (60 mL/min/1.73 m) at posttransplant day 14. We compared the clinical parameters, protocol biopsy findings, acute rejection (AR), and 10-year graft survival between the two groups. The SGF group had an older recipient age, lower ratio of donor to recipient body mass index, and higher incidence of AR than IGF group, as shown by protocol biopsies. The SGF group had significantly more AR episodes than IGF group within 12 months (21.1% vs. 13.4%, P