Simultaneous pancreas-kidney transplantation in Jehovah's Witness patients

The safety and efficacy of renal and liver transplantation has been reported for Jehovah's Witness (JW) patients, with patient, and graft survival similar to that of non-JW patients. We report our experience in five JW recipients of simultaneous pancreas-kidney transplants. None of the patients received transfusion of blood or blood products, either before or after transplant. Like the other solid organ transplants, patient, and graft survival was similar to that of the non-JW group. Specific technical issues related to the operative procedure include the use of the cell saver until the donor duodenum is opened (enteric contamination). Post-operatively, care should be taken to minimize drawing of blood and optimize erythrocyte synthesis with erythropoetin, folic acid, vitamin B12, and iron. Finally, it is critical that the pre-operative evaluation demonstrates sufficient cardiac reserve to allow the JW patient to tolerate a possible temporary anemic state.