Kidney Tranplants of various types are available in Germany. All kidney Tranplants are done by university professors, who are especially trained in this area. Cost of kidney transplants in Germany for an unmatched donor is on average 65,000 EUR. Cost of kidney transplant in Germany for matched donor is on average 45,000 EUR. Kidney donors and kidney recipients are heavily screened and must appear before two review boards, a medical board and ethics board for approval. This is includes psychological tests. This process can take up to three months, but can be done in as little as three weeks. EMT takes the client through this process.

Kidney Tranplant patients sign a contract with EMT to facilitate treatment and transfer of funds. Because EMT has a contract with the hospital, EMT is financially responsible for all of their clients' expenses. Therefore, all anticipated expenses for the client in a worst case scenario must be paid in advanced into a trust account for the client. Because the client, hospital and EMT want to assure that money is not a limiting factor for success in a kidney tranplant a total of 110,000 EUR is deposited for an unmatched client (85,000 EUR for a matched donor). The remission of the remainder is given to client after treatment is completed. We regret the uncertainty about the total cost, however there are many factors about kidney tranplants, which cannot be fully determined ahead of time. We will offer a full accounting of the process at the time of completion and refund.

Blood filtering can make almost anyone an eligible donor for a kidney transplant. If you do not have a kidney donor, it is very unlikely a kidney donor can be found in western Europe. Prices and costs in Europe for a kidney transplant are 75% lower than in the US for a kidney transplant. We believe that Europe is the safest place to have a kidney transplant done.

• Kidney Transplant: Definition
• Kidney Transplant: History
• Kidney Transplant: Indications
• Kidney Transplant: Contraindications
• Kidney Transplant: Compatibility
• Kidney Transplant: Procedure
• Kidney Transplant: Kidney-Pancreas Transplant
• Kidney Transplant: Post-op Care
• Kidney Transplant: Complications
• Kidney Transplant: Indications

Kidney Transplant: Definition

A Kidney Transplant or renal transplantation is the organ transplant of a kidney in a patient with end-stage renal failure. The main types are deceased and living donor transplant. In the former, the kidney originates from a deceased person. In the latter, the kidney is being donated by a living organ donor.

Kidney Transplant

Kidney Transplant: History

The first successful kidney transplant were done in 1952 in Boston and Paris. The transplantation was done between identical twins, to eliminate any problems of an immune reaction. It was actually the first successful human organ transplant in history. Kidney transplants were slow to catch on, for example the first kidney transplant in the United Kingdom did not occur until 1960 when Michael Woodruff performed one between identical twins in Edinburgh. Until the routine use of medications to prevent and treat acute rejection, introduced in 1964, deceased donor transplantation was not performed. The kidney was the easiest organ to transplant, tissue-typing was simple, the organ was relatively easy to remove and implant, live donors could be used without difficulty, and in the event of failure, kidney dialysis was available from the 1940s. Tissue-typing was essential to the success, early attempts in the 1950s on sufferers from Bright's disease had been very unsuccessful. The transplantation was done by Dr. Joseph E. Murray, who received the Nobel Prize for Medicine in 1990. The donor is still alive as of 2005, the recipient died eight years after the transplantation.

Kidney Transplant: Indications

The main indication for a kidney transplant is kidney failure, regardless of the cause. Common causes include hypertension, infections, diabetes mellitus and glomerulonephritis.

Kidney Transplant: Contraindications

There is little data on transplant recipients over age 80, and many centers will not do a kidney transplant such patients. However, this is changing. Recent cancer, active substance abuse, or failure to adhere to prescribed medical regimens may make someone ineligible for a transplant.

Kidney Transplant: Compatibility

Donor and recipient have to be ABO blood group compatible, and should ideally share as many HLA and "minor antigens" as possible. This decreases the risk of transplant rejection and need for dialysis and a further transplant. The risk of rejection after transplant may be reduced if the donor and recipient share as many HLA antigens as possible, if the recipient is not already sensitized to potential donor HLA antigens, and if immunosuppressant levels are kept in an appropriate range. In the United States, up to 17% of all deceased donor kidney transplants have no HLA mismatch.

Kidney Transplant: The Procedure

Since in most cases the barely functioning existing kidneys are not removed, the new kidney is usually placed in a location different from the original kidney (often in the iliac fossa), and as a result it is often necessary to use a different blood supply:

• The renal artery of the kidney, previously branching from the abdominal aorta in the donor, is often connected to the external iliac artery in the recipient.
• The renal vein of the new kidney, previously draining to the inferior vena cava in the donor, is often connected to the external iliac vein in the recipient.

Kidney Transplant: Kidney-Pancreas Transplant

Occasionally, the kidney is transplanted together with the pancreas. This is done in patients with diabetes mellitus type I, in whom the diabetes is due to destruction of the beta cells of the pancreas and in whom the diabetes has caused renal failure (diabetic nephropathy). This is almost always a deceased donor transplant. Only a few living donor (partial) pancreas transplants have been done. For individuals with diabetes and renal failure, the advantages of earlier transplant from a living donor are approximately equal to the risks of continued dialysis until a combined kidney and pancreas are available from a deceased donor

These procedures are commonly abbreviated as follows:

• "SKP transplant", for "simultaneous kidney-pancreas transplant"
• "PAK transplant", for "pancreas after kidney transplant" (By contrast, "PTA" refers to "Pancreas transplant alone".)

Kidney Transplant: Postop Care

The transplant surgery lasts about 3 hours. The donor kidney will be placed in the lower abdomen. The blood vessels from the donor kidney will be connected to arteries and veins in the recipient's body. When this is complete, blood will be allowed to flow through the kidney again, so the ischaemia time is minimized. In most cases, the kidney will soon start producing urine. Since urine is sterile, this has no effect on the operation. The final step is connecting the ureter from the donor kidney to the bladder.

The new kidney usually begins functioning immediately after surgery, but this may, depending on the quality of the organ, take a few days. Hospital stay is typically for 4 to 7 days. If complications arise, additional medicines may be administered to help the kidney produce urine.

Medicines were used to suppress the immune system from rejecting the donor kidney, before the days of blood filtering, or today if blood filtering is ineffective. These medicines must be taken for the rest of the patient's life. The most common medication regimen today is : tacrolimus, mycophenolate, and prednisone. Some patients may instead take ciclosporin, rapamycin, or azathioprine.

Kidney Transplant: Complications

Problems after a transplant may include:

• Transplant rejection (hyperacute, acute or chronic)
• Infections and sepsis due to the immunosuppressant drugs that are required to decrease risk of rejection
• Post-transplant lymphoproliferative disorder (a form of lymphoma due to the immune suppressants)
• Imbalances in electrolytes including Calcium and Phosphate which can lead to bone problems amongst other things
• Other side effects of medications including gastrointestinal inflammation and ulceration of the stomach and esophagus, hirsutism (excessive hair growth in a male-pattern distribution), hair loss, obesity, acne, diabetes mellitus (type 2), hypercholesterolemia and others

For a free evaluation of your treatment needs and cost, please contact us.

The information provided herein is not intended to be a substitute for professional medical advice.

Copyright © European Medical Tourist. Permission is granted to copy, distribute and/or modify this document under the terms of the GNU Free Documentation License.