Young Transplant Professionals in the Middle East Society for Organ Transplantation Region: Challenges and Opportunities

The power of youth represents the versatility of the Middle East, which has the largest number of youths among other world regions. Therefore, when addressing the future of organ transplantation in this region, the perspectives of young transplant professionals would be invaluable. Organ donation and transplantation in the Middle East face many challenges. These challenges, which would be transferred to young professionals pursuing a career in transplantation, are related to transplant education, training, and the health system itself. Young transplant professionals are seeking a platform that will bring the wisdom of leaders and the energy of youth transplant professionals together. This platform would focus on increasing recruitment and engagement of young physicians and surgeons and decreasing the hurdles mentioned above. A team of young professionals from the Middle East Society for Organ Transplantation countries hopes to bring their different perspectives into fruitful actions. Online education, career development, basic science research, and others are potential goals to be tackled. However, achieving this could not be possible without mutual collaborations with other young colleague teams from other transplant societies. Indeed, these actions can improve transplant science globally and in the MESOT region.

Knowledge and Attitude of People With or Without a Medical Education Regarding Organ Donation and Transplant: A Sample From the City of Baghdad

OBJECTIVES

Organ donation is the driving force for transplant. Awareness about donation and transplant is invaluable for improved transplant services in any country. Our objective was to assess the knowledge and attitude toward organ donation and transplant among medically educated adult Iraqis versus adult Iraqis who were not medically educated, in Baghdad, Iraq.

MATERIALS AND METHODS

For this study, we recruited 400 Iraqi residents of Baghdad city from December 1, 2018, to March 1, 2019. We used an interviewer-adm-inistered questionnaire to survey 200 health care professionals and 200 adults who lacked medical education, and then we analyzed the responses from the 2 groups.

RESULTS

The study included 165 males and 235 females (mean age 33.73 ± 10.38 years). Most participants (60%) were aware of organ donation, and a health care provider was the main source of their knowledge. Only 11.25% were aware of Iraqi legislation that permits donation after brain death. Nearly 50% of the participants volunteered to be living donors, and 229/400 (57.25%%) volunteered to donate after death. About 50% accepted the idea of organ donation as an act to save life, whomever the donor. The most important barrier was the fear of future risks to health after living donation and body disfigurement after death. There was a statistically significant difference in the knowledge and attitude scores between the 2 groups. From the study sample, 46.5% accepted the concept of incenting living donors or families of deceased donors.

CONCLUSIONS

Iraqi people are moderately informed about organ donation and transplant. Medically educated people demonstrated an attitude of greater acceptance. Religion and social beliefs were not barriers to organ donation in the study sample. Regulated governmental application of incentive programs may be a useful strategy at present.

Adherence to Immunosuppressive Medication in Iraqi Kidney Transplant Recipients During the First Year of Transplant. A Single-Center Experience

OBJECTIVES

Our objective was to measure adherence to immunosuppressive medications among Iraqi renal transplant patients at a single center.

MATERIALS AND METHODS

This cross-sectional study was conducted from January to November 2020 in the outpatient unit of the Nephrology and Renal Transplantation Center in Baghdad's Medical City. Seventy-five adult Iraqi renal transplant recipients were recruited. An Arabic version of the Basel Assessment of Adherence to Immunosuppressive Medications (BAASIS) scale was used to evaluate adherence.

RESULTS

The study included 75 adult renal transplant recipients (51 men/24 women) with a mean age of 39.44 ± 12.06 years. The mean time posttransplant was 8.11 ± 3.12 months. In our patient group, 65.33% reported total adherence and 34.6% did not adhere to one (25.3%) or more (9.3%) drug. We observed a statistically significant association between nonadherence and complications (P = .015, chi-square test). Four patients had biopsy-proven acute rejection, and all 4 patients were noncompliant with medications. Binary logistic regression model P values for employment, time after transplant, and complications were .06, .06, and .08, respectively.

CONCLUSIONS

There was a high rate of nonadherence among our sample of Iraqi renal transplant recipients in the first year posttransplant. Time after transplant and transplant complications were related to nonadherence. More extensive multicenter studies are needed to define the actual rate of adherence to immune suppression in Iraq.

Relapsing De Novo Membranous Nephropathy

Allograft membranous glomerulopathy can be a recurrent or de novo disease. Both instead have different underlying immune pathophysiology and disease pattern. While the introduction of ANTI-PLAR2 and THS7A brought new insights into the management of Immune/primary MN, the treatment of de novo MN is not clear. Relapsing de novo MN in a kidney transplant was rarely reported. Here, we present a case of relapsing de novo MN without evidence of rejection and a gratifying response to rituximab.

Insights into Futuristic Renal Medicine

The revolutionary innovations in biology and information technology influenced many medical and health disciplines. Although it is lagging behind others, renal medicine entered this chain of events. Nephrology and renal transplantation have many inherent challenges that needed to be addressed innovatively to receive these new frontiers in medicine. In a connected high biotech future, the applications of regenerative medicine, nanotechnology, genomics, artificial intelligence, 3D organ bioprinting, and smartphone applications will reshape the practice and research of renal medicine. Certainly, this will have a positive impact on patients' outcomes and the health-care system. These changes are coming, but with new challenges such as excess costs, and many moral challenges. Providing precise equitable care with maintaining patient's privacy and values will be difficult. In this review, we provide insights into future approaches to renal care.

Klaif M, Altaee H. MO996COVID-19 IN RENAL TRANSPLANT RECIPIENTS; A CASE SERIES FROM IRAQ. Nephrol Dial Transplant 2021;36:gfab111.0020. [PMCID: PMC8195000 DOI: 10.1093/ndt/gfab111.0020] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0]

Background and Aims

Renal transplant recipients seems at particular risk for Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID‐19). In addition to immune suppression cessation, multiple therapies have been tried with no supportive evidence. Favipiravir and colchicine showed benefit in some reports. Here we describe 19 adult renal transplant recipients with mild to moderate COVID-19 who were treated with the cessation of immunosuppression, favipiravir, and colchicine on an outpatient basis.

Results

This case series includes 19 renal transplant recipients with a mean age of 38.4 + 11.6 years and a mean duration of 55.9 + 36.1 months post-transplant. They were maintained on triple therapy with a calcineurine inhibitor, antiproliferative therapy and steroids. The laboratory data at weeks 1,2, and 3 showed that at weeks 2 all markers of inflammation increased especially serum ferritin (1718 + 315 ng/ml). Serum creatinine increased by < 30% with urine protein creatinine of < 500 mg/g. The mean time to recovery was 13 + 3.1 days. The patient who was on mTOR inhibitor showed the highest inflammatory response and the longest time to recovery, 18 days. All patients showed complete recovery with stable graft function and no patient warranted dialysis, nor ICU care.

Conclusion

In the settings of limited resources, unavailability of costly immunomodulatory therapies and limited hospital capacity, early case definition, judicious management of immune suppression, and affordable antiviral and anti-inflammatory drugs will improve outcome in early cases of COVID-19 in renal transplant recipients.

A rare cause of tumour lysis syndrome and acute kidney injury

Tumour lysis syndrome is rare in solid malignancies. Here, we report a case of tumour lysis syndrome and acute kidney injury in a 23-year-old female with gestational trophoblastic neoplasia. Hydration and early dialysis therapy were started with good recovery. On follow up she progressed to chronic kidney disease. After 6 years of follow up, the patient conceived and delivered successfully.

Clinical Relevance of Pretransplant Testing for Anti-Human Leukocyte Antigen Antibodies in Iraqi Renal Transplant Patients

OBJECTIVES

The use of highly sensitive Luminex technology to assess the immunologic risk of renal transplant candidates have greatly added to the ability of stratifying patients and have paved the way to avoid hyperacute antibody-mediated rejection. Our aim was to understand how much the testing for pretransplant anti-HLA antibodies affects the decision for transplant and survival at 1 year posttransplant.

MATERIALS AND METHODS

From January 2014 to June 2017, 336 transplant candidates were tested by complement-dependent cytotoxicity and by the Luminex platform for anti-HLA antibodies in our nephrology and renal transplant center (The Medical City, Baghdad, Iraq). All clinical and laboratory data were noted. Our program is a living-donor, blood group-compatible donor program. All transplant patients (sensitized or not) were followed for 1 year, and the Kaplan-Meier method was used to determine survival rate.

RESULTS

Mean age of the study group was 34.07 ± 12.4 years. Of 336 transplant patients who were tested, there were 63 (18.75%) sensitized patients and 159 (47.35%) nonsensitized patients. Blood transfusion was the main cause of sensitization. Class I anti-HLA antibodies were detected in 54 of 63 sensitized patients (85.7%), and class II anti-HLA antibodies were detected in 39 of 63 sensitized patients (61.9%). Donor-specific antibodies were detected in 33/63 (52.3%). Thirteen sensitized patients (15.3%) underwent transplant. No incidences of hyperacute rejection were recorded. The 1-year survival of the nonsensitized patient group was 90%, whereas survival was 61.5% for the sensitized patient group.

CONCLUSIONS

Pretransplant testing for anti-HLA antibodies is undoubtedly useful for assessment of patient risk, to facilitate decisions regarding patient and donor selection, and to plan treatment strategies. The 1-year survival for sensitized patient was lower than for nonsensitized patients. More knowledge, experience, technology advancements, and support are needed to improve the Iraqi practice of transplanting sensitized patients.

Renal anemia syndromes in iraqi hemodialysis patients according to iron status

Anemia is common in patients on hemodialysis (HD). Adequate iron stores are essential for achieving the best hemoglobin level through maximum benefit from erythropoiesis-stimulating agents (ESA). Decreased iron stores or decreased availability of iron are the most common reasons for resistance to the effect of these agents. Our objective was to categorize a group of Iraqi HD patients according to absolute or functional iron deficiency anemia (IDA); this study was conducted in the HD unit of the Baghdad Teaching Hospital from October 2012 to January 2013. Seventy prevalent adult HD Iraqi patients were enrolled. All patients were tested for full blood counts and iron parameters. They were categorized as nonanemic and those with absolute or functional iron deficiency. The patients were also tested for serum albumin, C-reactive protein (CRP), parathyroid hormone, and serum hepcidin levels. Data were expressed as mean ± standard deviation, and frequencies (number) and proportions (%). The mean age of the study group was 49.8 ± 12.3 years. Diabetes was the primary cause of end-stage renal disease, seen in 30 patients (42.8%). Majority of the HD patients were anemic, [51 (82.9%)] and among them, 39 (76.4%), had functional IDA. The mean serum iron, serum ferritin, and transferrin saturation were significantly higher in patients with functional IDA than those with absolute IDA (P <0.05). The mean highly sensitive CRP, parathormone and hepcidin values were also significantly higher in functional IDA patients than in those with absolute IDA and the nonanemic group (P <0.05). More than half of the study patients had functional IDA, and this can explain ESA hyporesponsiveness. This is besides the interplay of other factors including inflammation, inadequate dialysis, and secondary hyperparathyroidism. It is essential to diagnose functional IDA early, before the initiation of unnecessary iron therapy.

Five years renal transplantation data: Single-center experience from Iraq

Renal transplantation is the treatment of choice for patients with end-stage renal disease. In Iraq, renal transplantation started in 1973 and has continued until now with live donor transplantation, since deceased donor transplant program is not approved as yet. Long-term transplant data are still scarce. The aim of our study is to present data on transplantation and medical follow-up at one year and, survival analysis at one, three and five years. A total of 250 renal transplantations were performed at the Nephrology and Renal Transplantation Center, Baghdad between January 2009 and January 2014. It is a living donor, blood group compatible donor program. All patients received triple immunosuppression (calcineurine inhibitor, mycophenolate mofetil or mycophenolic acid, and steroid). The Kaplan-Meier method was used to determine the survival rate. There were 92 live related donors, 143 unrelated donors, and 15 spouse donors. The mean age was 34.07 ± 12.2 years. The one-year graft survival for related and unrelated donor transplants was 98.9% and 91.8%, respectively. Graft survival was lower (82.9%) in recipients with acute rejection episodes. The patient survival at one-year was 94%. The three-year graft and patient survival was 91% and 90%, respectively, and five-year survival for grafts and patients was 87.1% and 88%, respectively. The outcome of the renal transplantation in Iraq is improving. Long-term patient follow-up needs more meticulous attention. The development of renal transplant registry is critical for future planning. Moreover, renal transplantation practice in Iraq needs more social, religious, and governmental support.

Depression in Iraqi hemodialysis patients

INTRODUCTION

Affective disorders, particularly depression, are the commonest and probably the most important psychopathological complication of end stage renal disease (ESRD). Depression has the potential to alter adversely the medical outcome of ESRD patients and the psychological stress can affect patient's adherence to medication regimen. In Iraq as well as many other Arab countries, the true prevalence of depression among ESRD patients is unknown. The objective of this study was to determine the prevalence of depression among a cohort of Iraqi hemodialysis (HD) patients and relate it to their socio-demographic characteristics.

METHODS

We recruited patients from two HD centers in Baghdad, excluding patients with history of depression or other psychiatric disorders prior to the initiation of HD. The Arabic version of diagnostic and statistical manual of mental disorders fourth edition (DSM-IV) was used to diagnose depression. Beck's Depression Inventory was used to grade its severity. Clinical and laboratory data of the study group were documented and related to the diagnosis of depression.

RESULTS

Seventy-five Iraqi patients on maintenance HD were included in the study. Patients' duration on HD ranged from six months to five years. The prevalence of depression among this cohort of HD patients was 80%. The prevalence of severe, moderate and mild depression was 25%, 50% and 25% respectively. The mean depression score was 17.1. Female gender, unemployment, and marital status had statistically significant associations with depression.

CONCLUSION

Depression is common in this group of Iraqi HD patients and its prevalence is comparable to the results of similar studies in other societies.

Tubulointerstitial lupus nephritis

BACKGROUND

Isolated or predominant tubulointerstitial lupus nephritis is rare.

CASE PRESENTATION

Here we report the case of a thirty eight years old male who was diagnosed with systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) according to clinical and laboratory criteria and presented with impaired renal function and non nephrotic range proteinuria. Renal biopsy revealed normal glomeruli but interstitial momonuclear cell infiltration. Immunohiostochemistry (IHC) showed immune deposits in the tubular basement membranes (TBMs), and the peritubular capillary basement membranes (PTCBMs). He was started on high dose oral steroids, which were gradually tapered over one month. His renal functions improved over few days and normalized by the end of the first month of treatment. He was continued on low dose steroids and azathioprine with no evidence of relapse.

CONCLUSIONS

Predominant tubulointerstitial lupus can occur, although rarely; and it runs a favorable course with good response to treatment.

Prediction of anthracycline induced cardiotoxicity: study of thirty-one Iraqi adult patients

OBJECTIVE

To look for a nearly ideal tool for prediction of anthracycline-induced cardiotoxicity.

METHOD

Thirty-one patients with various hematological malignancies were included in the study which was conducted from Sept. 2005 to Sept. 2006 in Baghdad Teaching Hospital - Hematology Unit. Initial cardiovascular assessment including cardiac troponin I, electrocardiography and echocardiography were done and repeated one month after the commencement of anthracycline-based regimen. Cardiotoxicity was considered present if the patient has clinical and electrocardiographic evidences, troponin positivity, echocardiographic evidence, or any combination of these.

RESULTS

The mean age for the study sample was 34.1 ± 17.2 years comprising of 17 male and 14 female patients. Increasing age, body surface area, anthracycline dose as well as the concomitant use of cyclophosphomide/All Trans Retinoic Acid were associated with increased risk of cardiotoxicity. The cut-off point of body surface area above which the risk of anthracycline-induced cardiotoxicity is increased was 1.88 m2 while the cut-off point for anthracyclines dose was 145.5 mg/m2. The constellation of clinical data, ECG, and cTnI was 92% predictive of early evidence of anthracycline-induced cardiotoxicity. More weight is added when echocardiography is used as a diagnostic tool. The incidence of cardiotoxicity attributed to treatment was 38.7%. The predictive power of cardiac troponin I alone was 58.3%, whereas it increases to 91% when combined with electrocardiography and to 95% when combined with echocardiographic study.

CONCLUSION

The age, anthracyclines dose and the use of other chemotherapeutics increase the risk of anthracycline-induced cardiotoxicity. Cardiac troponin I is a simple non-invasive indicator for the presence of anthracycline-induced cardiotoxicity especially when used in combination with other parameters.