Greffe rénale et artérite du greffon à Candida albicans

Mycotic Pseudoaneurysm After Kidney Transplantation: Two Case Reports

BACKGROUND

Vascular complications after kidney transplantation may cause allograft loss. Here, we describe 2 patients with extrarenal mycotic pseudoaneurysm after kidney transplantation.

PATIENTS

Patient 1 was a 54-year-old man who developed pseudoaneurysm 60 days after transplantation, and patient 2 was a 48-year-old woman who was diagnosed with a pseudoaneurysm 5 months after transplantation.

RESULTS

Patient 1 had a deceased-donor kidney transplant with end-to-side external iliac arterial anastomosis that was reconstructed 8 days after transplantation owing to rupture and major bleeding. At 60 days after transplantation, he had high serum creatinine level and Doppler ultrasonography showed a pseudoaneurysm of the arterial graft anastomosis and postanastomotic renal artery stenosis. Treatment included surgical excision of the pseudoaneurysm, vascular reconstruction, and fluconazole, with mycologic culture of the resected pseudoaneurysm showing Candida albicans. Patient 2 developed nondisabling intermittent claudication at 5 months after kidney transplantation, with a pseudoaneurysm subsequently observed on Doppler ultrasonography and computerized tomographic angiography. Treatment included renal artery thrombectomy and common iliac bypass to the hilar donor renal artery with inverted ipsilateral long saphenous vein. Operative samples showed C albicans, and she was treated with fluconazole. Both patients had satisfactory outcomes, and both kidney allografts were preserved.

CONCLUSIONS

Extrarenal mycotic pseudoaneurysms after kidney transplantation require a high index of suspicion for early diagnosis, and preservation of the kidney graft may be achieved with the use of surgical treatment and antifungal therapy.

Fifty-one cases of fungal arteritis after kidney transplantation: A case report and review of the literature

Fungal arteritis affecting graft arteries is a rare but life-threatening complication in kidney transplantation (KT). Here, we report the case of a patient with Aspergillus arteritis who experienced renal artery rupture 8 days after KT. We also reviewed 50 other reported cases of fungal arteritis after KT. We found that fungal contamination can occur during kidney graft harvest, preservation, and/or transplantation. Typically, early diagnosis, timely antifungal treatment, and emergency surgery seem crucial for avoiding life-threatening vascular complications.

Clinical impact of bacterial contamination of perfusion fluid in kidney transplantation

Contamination of perfusion fluid (PF) could lead to serious infections in kidney transplant recipients. Preemptive therapy (PE-T) in case of yeast contamination of PF is mandatory. The usefulness of PE-T in presence of bacteria remains unclear. In this study we evaluated the incidence of PF bacterial contamination and the impact of PE-T on clinical outcome. Microbiological data of 290 PF and clinical data of the corresponding recipients collected in our hospital from January 2010 and December 2012 were analyzed. Recipients with bacterial contaminated PF (101) were divided in 3 groups: group 1 (n = 52) PE-T treated bacteria resistant to perioperative antibiotic prophylaxis (PAP), group 2 (n = 28) bacteria sensitive to PAP, group 3 (n = 21) PE-T-untreated bacteria resistant to PAP. Incidence of positive PF was 34.8 %, 50.4 % staphylococci, 9.9 % C. albicans. No significant differences in the rate of PF-related infections between the three groups were found. In conclusion, although PF contamination is frequent, the incidence of PF-related infections is very low. In addition, in this study PE-T did not help to reduce the rate of PF-related infection suggesting that a resonable reduction in the use of antibiotic terapy could be made. However, waiting for largest and prospective clinical trials to confirm our findings, a closely clinical and microbiologic monitoring of the recipient is highly recommended in case of PF contamination.

Successful repair of post-transplant mycotic aneurysm of iliac artery with renal graft preservation: a case report

OBJECTIVE

To describe the successful repair of a post-transplant iliac artery aneurysm with renal graft preservation.

METHODS

An aneurysm was detected in an asymptomatic 47-year-old male recipient on routine Doppler ultrasonography that involved the right external iliac artery and the distal portion of the renal artery. Aneurysm resection was performed immediately after diagnosis 3 months after transplantation. A polytetrafluorethylene tube graft was used for reconstruction of the right external iliac artery. Reconstruction of the renal artery required interposition of a vena saphena graft between the proximal portion of the renal artery and the polytetrafluorethylene tube.

RESULTS

The total warm ischemia time used for aneurysm repair and renal transplant revascularization was 90 minutes. The postoperative Doppler ultrasound scan showed homogeneous graft perfusion. Pathologic and microbiologic examination of the resected aneurysm revealed Candida albicans arteritis. The center in which the contralateral donor kidney was transplanted had previously reported Candida albicans contamination of the preservation solution. The recipient of the contralateral kidney lost his graft owing to bleeding complications. Information on this incident was acquired by our center only after aneurysm repair. Postoperatively, our recipient was given systemic antifungal therapy. At 6 months, the serum creatinine level was 1.7 mg/dL.

CONCLUSION

Although a high-risk procedure, repair of a mycotic aneurysm with renal graft preservation is feasible. Routine microbiologic screening of the preservation solution might help to detect and treat donor-transmitted infections in renal transplant recipients.

Evidence that graft-site candidiasis after kidney transplantation is acquired during organ recovery: a multicenter study in France

BACKGROUND

Infections of renal grafts with Candida species can induce life-threatening complications in the recipient.

METHODS

A 9-year retrospective study involving all of the transplant centers in France was designed to determine the incidence, origin, characteristics, and outcome of graft-site candidiasis that occurred after kidney transplantation. Yeasts cultured from preservation or drainage solutions and graft specimens were recorded.

RESULTS

Among 18,617 kidney grafts, 18 recipients corresponding to 12 donors developed culture-confirmed graft-site candidiasis (incidence, 1 case per 1000 grafts) a median of 25 days after the graft procedure. Clinical presentations included 14 cases of renal arteritis (13 were complicated by aneurysm), 1 urinoma, 2 graft site abscesses, and 1 surgical site infection. Candida albicans was involved in 13 cases. A unique C. albicans genotype or a single rare Candida species was involved in each episode. Together with the clinical history, these findings demonstrate that organ contamination followed by transmission to the recipient occurred during recovery. Therapeutic management varied from simple monitoring in 1 case to a combination of surgery (nephrectomy in 9 cases and arterial bypass in 9 cases) and antifungal therapy (14 cases). Overall, 3 of 18 kidney transplant recipients died, and 9 had their graft surgically removed.

CONCLUSION

Graft-transmitted candidiasis that ends most often in fungal arteritis is associated with high morbidity and mortality after kidney transplantation and is related to organ contamination during recovery in the donor.

Outcome of renal transplantation in eight patients with Candida sp. contamination of preservation fluid

The complications of kidney graft preservation fluid infected by Candida sp. may range in severity from trivial infections to life-threatening complications, including graft arteritis and anastomotic rupture. Mandatory nephrectomy has recently been proposed as a means of preventing arterial wall rupture in such cases. We describe the clinical features and outcome of renal transplantation from a cadaveric donor in eight recipients with preservation fluid testing positive for Candida sp. Six patients were treated with antifungal drugs. After 1-2 years of follow-up, including regular imaging, none of the patients had developed arterial aneurysm, and all had a functional allograft and were alive. The contamination of renal graft preservation fluid with Candida sp. may be uneventful and should not systematically lead to removal of the graft. Until other risk factors for vascular complications have been determined, early antifungal treatment and repeated radiological monitoring are advisable for the prevention and/or early detection of such complications.

Candida albicans arteritis transmitted by conservative liquid after renal transplantation: a report of four cases and review of the literature

BACKGROUND

Mycotic arteritis and/or aneurysms are infrequent complications of renal transplantation. They are mostly secondary to bacterial infection and rarely to Candida albicans. We report four cases of mycotic arteritis due to C. albicans after renal transplantation but which have been inoculated during organ harvesting or conservation.

METHODS

In all the four cases corresponding to two independent donors, C. albicans was isolated few days later in the systematic culture of the conservative liquid. We also review the clinical features and outcomes of 13 cases previously reported in the literature.

RESULTS

In two cases, the diagnosis of fungal arteritis was confirmed only during autopsy after the patient's death due to massive bleeding. In the other two cases, the diagnosis was made on the arterial section of the anastomotic wall after detransplantation for massive bleeding for arterial leakage although an immediate antifungal treatment with fluconazole and caspofungin was given and was found to be inefficient.

CONCLUSION

This is a serious complication of renal transplantation because it leads to graft loss in the majority of the cases and even to death in a few cases despite an efficient and rapid treatment. Routine fungal cultures of preservation media are important for early diagnosis and timely surgical interventions are life-saving.