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Tijdschrift voor Geneeskunde

Publication date: 2010-01-01
Volume: 66 Pages: 167 - 172
Publisher: Nederlandstalige medische Faculteiten in België

Author:

Boecxstaens, Veerle
de Roey, Joachim ; Coosemans, Willy ; Monbaliu, Diethard ; Vanderschueren, Steven ; Claes, Kathleen ; Bammens, Bert ; Evenepoel, Pieter ; Kuypers, Dirk ; Maes, Bart ; De Baere, C ; Lombaerts, Rita ; Vanrenterghem, Yves ; Pirenne, Jacques

Abstract:

In an endeavor to compensate the shortage of suitable donors, the number of living donor kidney transplants has increased worldwide. In Belgium, the percentage of living donor kidney transplants compared to other countries remains low. This is probably due to the relatively high number of kidneys obtained via traditional (deceased) organ donors (∼ 25 donors/million inhabitants). Nevertheless, the growing interval on the traditional waiting list for deceased donor kidneys in addition to the superior results following living donation against deceased donor kidney transplantation, induced a reassessment of this strategy. Thus in our center, in the University Clinics of Leuven (U.Z. Leuven, Belgium) a living donor kidney transplant program was initiated in 1997. Since then 60 procedures were performed. This manuscript presents the obtained results, while also comparing living donation with deceased donor kidney transplantation.