Unusual Kaposi's sarcoma in a renal transplant recipient.

Kaposi's sarcoma (KS) was first described as an ‘idiopathicmultiple pigmented sarcoma of the skin’ by Moritz Kaposiin 1872 [1]. Skin lesions have a dark blue or purplish colouron white skin and often appear pigmented on black skin. Initially,they may be macular and may coalesce to form large plaques.Subsequently, they become infiltrating and may form nodularand fungiform tumours. We present an unusual large     

Renal malakoplakia as a pseudotumoral lesion in a renal transplant patient: A case report

Malakoplakia is a rare chronic inflammatory disease associated with gram-negative bacterial infections frequently caused by Escherichia coli. Malakoplakia usually affects the lower urinary tract (bladder) but there are cases described in the kidney as well as in the respiratory and digestive organs. We report on a case with renal parenchymal malakoplakia in a renal transplant patient and describe the pathological lesions of malakoplakia: histiocytic proliferation with scarce inflammatory infiltrate, histiocytes with acidophilic cytoplasm and the presence of characteristic Michaelis-Gutmann bodies. The authors in this study review the updated reports related to the entity in this uncommon localization, the association with an immunocompromised patient, the macroscopic presentation as a pseudotumoral lesion and the possible relationship with the xanthogranulomatous pyelonephritis as a form of a histopathological spectrum in patients affected with gram negative urinary tract infection.     

Rhodococcus equi pneumonia in a renal transplant patient: a case report and review of literature

Immunocompromised patients are susceptible to many pathogens, including those that are predominantly problems in veterinary medicine. We report a case of a 42-yr-old white male who presented 19 months post-cadaveric renal transplant (for IgA nephropathy) with a 5 d history of nausea, vomiting, abdominal cramping and diarrhea. Admission chest X-ray revealed a suspicious mass lesion in the left lower lobe. Computed tomography (CT) guided biopsy of the lesion showed a large zone of CD68 +ve histiocytes in a non-caseating granuloma. Gram stain revealed multiple gram-positive rods within the histiocytes, which were eventually identified as R. equi. After 4 months of therapy with fluoroquinolones (Avelox) and Azithromycin a repeat CT showed complete resolution of the lesion. We reviewed the literature with special focus on the clinical features, challenges in diagnosis, and treatment of this rare infection (especially in the transplant patients who are also on immunosuppressive therapy).     

Benign methylmalonic acidemia in a sibship with distal renal tubular acidosis

Two male infants born to consanguineous parents were investigated for feeding difficulties in the 1st month of life. Both were found to have distal renal tubular acidosis (dRTA) with hypercalciuria. Nephrocalcinosis was present in the first child but not in the second. Urinary organic acid profile demonstrated an excess of methylmalonic acid (MMA) in both children in the absence of any other organic acid. MMA mutase activity and propionate incorporation were normal. There have been no neurological symptoms in either child. The first child has normal growth and psychomotor development at 4 years. His brother, who also has significant gastro-oesophageal reflux, has failed to thrive and currently requires nasogastric feeding and caloric supplements to maintain weight along the 3rd percentile. Urinary and plasma MMA continue to be raised in both cases. The association of increased urinary and plasma MMA and dRTA presenting in the 1st month of life has not previously been reported and may represent a new syndrome of autosomal recessive inheritance. Received January 12, 1998; received in revised form and accepted March 26, 1998     

Incomplete renal tubular acidosis and bone mineral density: a population survey in an area of endemic renal tubular acidosis.

BACKGROUND: 'Primary' osteoporosis has been associated with a high incidence of a renal acidification defect, incomplete renal tubular acidosis (iRTA). An acid loading test, to exclude the defect, has been recommended for inclusion in the work-up of osteoporosis. However, there is no community-based study to confirm its utility. METHOD: A community-based survey was conducted in the Khon Kaen province, Thailand, between January and June, 2000. We randomly enrolled 361 apparently healthy adults, 146 men and 215 women, in this study. The bone mineral densities (BMDs) of the spine and femur were determined in all subjects. The diagnosis of iRTA was based on: normal serum electrolytes and one or both of first morning urinary pH >5.5 or the failure of an acid loading test to decrease it to >5.5. Dietary diaries, serum electrolyte tests and 24 h urine collections were obtained from all iRTA subjects. RESULTS: There were 23 (6.4%) iRTA subjects in the population studied. The age, height, weight and calcium intake were comparable between iRTA and normal subjects, as were the BMDs of spine and femur. There was no difference between the two groups in the distributions of BMD with age for either area. Multiple regression analyses of the studied population demonstrated that age, body weight, duration of menopause and gender (only for the femoral neck) were independent variables that affected BMD. CONCLUSION: Incomplete distal renal tubular acidosis alone was not associated with lower bone mass in this cohort. It may nevertheless be valuable to monitor serum electrolytes and BMD in patients with iRTA due to their tendency to develop intermittent metabolic acidosis.     

Anaesthesia for renal transplant surgery

Renal transplantation is the preferred therapeutic option for patients with end-stage renal disease. Survival rates are much higher in patients who receive a transplant. Patients with renal failure have significant concomitant medical conditions, such as cardiovascular disease. This article provides an overview of the important issues to be considered in patients undergoing renal transplant, and discusses the anaesthetic management of these patients.     

Colchicine myoneuropathy in a renal transplant patient

Colchicine is widely employed for the treatment of gout in renal transplant patients where NSAIDs are contra-indicated and allopurinol prophylaxis is often avoided due to concomitant azathioprine immunosuppression. We report here a case of colchicine-induced myoneuropathy in a renal transplant recipient. Our patient had myalgia, muscle weakness, elevated creatine kinase levels, myopathic changes on electromyography and peripheral neuropathy. Withdrawal of colchicine resulted in recovery within 4 weeks. Renal transplant recipients are likely to be at greater risk of colchicine-induced myoneuropathy due to the unique concurrence of risk factors predisposing to toxicity in such patients. These risk factors include the high incidence of gout in this population, widespread use of colchicine as first-line therapy, impaired renal function and concomitant cyclosporin treatment. The diagnosis should be considered in any renal transplant recipient receiving the drug who develops myopathy. Prompt withdrawal of colchicine therapy should result in rapid clinical and biochemical improvement.     

Emphysematous urinoma in a renal transplant patient

Urinary infection is a common complication after kidney transplantation. In some instances, especially with Escherichia coli infections, there is formation and collection of gas in the parenchyma and collecting system of the kidney, giving rise to the condition of emphysematous pyelonephritis. Such a process could occur in collections of urine (urinoma) secondary to ureteric leak in the transplant kidney. This process has not been described so far. In this report, we describe the first case of an infected urinoma with an interesting radiologic finding, a so-called emphysematous urinoma. © 2001 by the National Kidney Foundation, Inc.     

Limitations of glomerular filtration rate equations in the renal transplant patient

This study aims to compare the performance of endogenous creatinine clearance (CL(cr)) and a number of published mathematical equations to calculate glomerular filtration rate (GFR) in renal transplant patients considering (99m)Tc DTPA isotope scan as the reference method. A total of 152 GFR were performed on 81 renal transplant patients. Accuracy of each method was measured at different percentiles. The bias and precision of all the methods were then compared. A paired t-test was used to compare the performance of each calculation to the respective GFR measured by isotope study performed on the same day. In the total population, all calculated methods correlated significantly with the isotope results. Accuracies within specific ranges of the isotope GFR were limited in all equations (agreement with isotope result /= 50 mL/min and Gates in patients with GFR < 50 mL/min. Salazar (D.E. Salazar and G.B. Corcoran, Am J Med 1988; vol. 84: p. 1053) had the least bias in patients with BMI above 30 kg/m(2) and the Davis equation (G.A. Davis and M.H. Chandler, Am J Health Syst Pharm 1996; vol. 53: p. 1028) in patients with BMI <25 kg/m(2). In all analyses, Nankivell (B.J. Nankivell, S.M. Gruenwald, R.D.M. Allen and J.R. Chapman, Transplantation 1995; vol. 59: p. 1683) overestimated GFR by more than 80% and MDRD 1 and 2 in <10% of the time. The results demonstrate the inherited limitation in the currently available equations to calculate GFR in renal transplant patients.     

Levofloxacin and rhabdomyolysis in a renal transplant patient.

Rhabdomyolysis can lead to fatal hyperkalaemia, acute renalfailure and compartment syndromes in renal transplant patients.The most common cause for rhabdomyolysis in these patients isa drug interaction between statins and ciclosporin A [1]. Statinsare known to be myotoxic [2], and their serum levels can beelevated with the concomitant use of ciclosporin A, as the metabolismof both drugs is dependent     

Prevalence and characterization of renal tubular acidosis in patients with osteopenia and osteoporosis and in non-porotic controls.

BACKGROUND: Chronic metabolic acidosis may increase alkali mobilization from the bone and thus promote the development of osteoporosis. The objective of the current study was to compare urinary acidification in patients with reduced bone mineral content with that in control subjects with normal bone density. METHODS: Forty-six subjects (41 females, 5 males) with osteopenia or osteoporosis were studied. In none of the subjects were overt metabolic acidosis, derangement of potassium homeostasis, or renal insufficiency present. Distal tubular acidification was studied by means of oral ammonium chloride loading test (0.1 g/kg body weight) and the oral frusemide test (40 mg). In addition the frusemide test was performed in 20 healthy age- and sex-matched controls (17 females, 3 males). RESULTS: In all control subjects a urinary pH <5. 5 was observed following the ingestion of 40 mg frusemide. In contrast, in patients with reduced bone mineral density incomplete renal tubular acidosis type I (RTA I) was diagnosed in 10 of 46 subjects (22%) by oral ammonium chloride loading test. Disorders possibly related to RTA I were detected in eight of these 10 patients. Thirty-six patients had a normal urinary pH response following oral ammonium chloride loading. Oral frusemide, 40 mg, failed to lower urinary pH <5.5 in sixteen patients (35%), these included 10 subjects with incomplete RTA I, and six subjects with a normal oral ammonium chloride loading test. An abnormal frusemide test was found in 35% of patients with reduced bone mass and in none of the normal controls (chi(2)=7.39; P<0.01). With the ammonium chloride test as the gold standard for diagnosis of distal RTA, the frusemide test showed a sensitivity of 1.0 (95% CI, 0.69-1.0) and a specificity of 0.89 (95% CI, 0.78-0.96) for the diagnosis of distal RTA. Patients with incomplete RTA I were younger than those without incomplete RTA I (42+/-16 vs 54+/-14 years; P=0.025; mean+/-SD). Basal serum bicarbonate concentrations and capillary pH did not differ between the groups. CONCLUSION: Incomplete RTA I may be prevalent in a significant proportion of patients suffering from osteopenia or osteoporosis. The outcome of the frusemide test suggests either a defect of the H(+)ATPase in the cortical collecting tubule (CCT) or a defective Na(+) reabsorption in the CCT. Prospective studies are needed to further elucidate the impact of incomplete RTA I on the development of reduced bone mineral content.     

Poor prognosis of heart transplant patients with end-stage renal failure.

BACKGROUND: Chronic kidney disease (CKD) and end-stage renal failure (ESRF) are major complications after a heart transplant. The aim of this study is to compare survival in heart transplant (HT) vs non-heart transplant (non-HT) patients starting dialysis. METHODS: Survival was studied among the 539 newly dialysed patients between 1 January 1995 and 31 December 2005 in our Department. All patients were prospectively followed from the date of first dialysis up to death or 31 December 2005. Multivariate survival analysis adjusted on baseline characteristics was performed with the Cox model. RESULTS: There were 21 HT patients and they were younger than non-HT patients at first dialysis: 58.6+/-11.6 vs 63.0+/-16.2 years (P=0.09). Calcineurin inhibitor nephrotoxicity was the main cause of ESRF in HT patients (47.6%). Crude 1, 3 and 5-year survival rates in HT and in non-HT patients were as follows: 76.2%, 57.1%, 28.6% and 79.1%, 58.7%, 46.7% (P=0.2). The adjusted hazard ratio of death in HT vs non-HT patients was 2.27 [1.33-3.87], P=0.003. Sudden death was the main cause of death in HT patients, in 33.3% vs 10.4% in non-HT patients (P=0.01). Five HT patients benefited from renal transplant. They were all alive at the end of the study period, while one patient among the 16 remaining on dialysis survived. CONCLUSION: HT patients with CKD who reached ESRF have a poor outcome after starting dialysis in comparison with other ESRF patients. Improvement in renal function management in the case of CKD is needed in these patients and non-nephrotoxic immunosuppressive regimens have to be evaluated. Renal transplant should be the ESRF treatment of choice in HT patients.     

Clinical remission and pathological progression after tonsillectomy in a renal transplant patient with recurrent IgA nephropathy

Abstract:  We discuss a renal transplant patient with recurrent IgA nephropathy (IgAN) before and after tonsillectomy. A 36-year-old man started on hemodialysis support in 1996 due to biopsy-proven IgAN, living related renal transplantation was then performed in 1997. Six years after transplantation, the patient presented with microhematuria and proteinuria. Graft biopsy for these urinary abnormalities showed recurrent IgAN. Tonsillectomy was subsequently performed in December 2003, proteinuria remitted 6 months after the tonsillectomy and microhematuria disappeared three years later. Protocol graft biopsy was subsequently performed twice, at 2 yr after the tonsillectomy (2005) and 4 yr after (2008). Comparing the findings of the pre-tonsillectomy biopsy and the two post-tonsillectomy biopsies, an increase in mesangial cells and matrix in 2005, and an expansion of the mesangial matrix and proliferation of mesangial interposition in 2008. In addition, global sclerosis of glomeruli increased over time, the area of tubulointerstitial damage has extended as well. While the tonsillectomy led to clinical remission of recurrent IgAN, the chronicity progressed on these protocol biopsies. This is the first report of the efficacy and the limitations of tonsillectomy in a case of recurrent IgAN in a transplant patient.     

Familial hypophosphatemic rickets with proximal renal tubular acidosis

We have experienced 3 case of familial hypophosphatemic rickets with proximal renal tubular acidosis. Consisting of a family of 2 years old girl, 7 months old girl baby and their father aged 42 years. Roentgenological studies, biochemical tests on blood and renal function tests revealed hypophosphatemia in all these patients. Metabolic acidosis was found only in the 2 girls. Distal renal tubular acidosis was not found to be responsible for the metabolic disorder according to the sodium bicarbonate (NaHCO₃), and ammonium chloride (NH₄cl) load testing. No glycosuria, proteinuria and panaminoaciduris were detected, so that Fanconi's syndrome was ruled out and the diagnosis of hypophosphatemia was made. Based on these 3 cases, future status of untreated patients with this disease could be predicted. The course of this disease can be divided into 3 stages, infant, childfood and adult period.     

Fibromuscular hyperplasia as a cause of transplant renal artery stenosis

SUMMARY:   There are several causes of transplant renal artery stenosis, resulting in hyperten- sion and renal dysfunction. Rarely, fibromuscular hyperplasia may cause such a presentation, and this case report discusses the historical, diagnostic and management issues pertaining to this rare situation.     

Generalized lymphedema in a sirolimus-treated renal transplant patient

Abstract:  Generalized lymphedema is an extremely rare effect of sirolimus therapy in renal transplant recipients. We describe the development of this complication in a 56-yr-old woman, who was given an experimental protocol with cyclosporine, sirolimus, steroids, and basiliximab. Following the protocol, after one month, the patient was randomized to the "sirolimus only" group, while cyclosporine was completely suspended and the oral steroids were continued. Three months later, the patient was admitted for severe lymphedema of the lower limbs, with significant weight increase, massive ascites and dyspnea, but excellent renal function. A chest radiography and an ultrasound study of the heart showed a moderate pleural and pericardial effusion. An abdominal ultrasound scan showed two small lymphoceles next to the transplanted kidney, confirmed with a CT scan. After sirolimus discontinuation the generalized lymphedema started to improve and three months later all the symptoms had disappeared.