A survey of waiting lists for kidney transplantation in northeastern Iran

Abstract

Introduction: End-stage renal disease (ESRD) continues to be a public health challenge. In ESRD patients, renal replacement therapy is essential. Kidney transplantation is considered as an effective therapeutic procedure for ESRD. On the advice of a qualified nephrologist, ESRD patients are registered on a waiting list, seeking organ transplantation. Objectives: This study aimed to report the status of the waiting list for kidney transplantation in the northeastern Iran region, with data covering the time period until 2017. Patients and Methods: The study was conducted at Montaserie hospital in Mashhad, Iran. We reviewed the clinical records of all ESRD patients referred to the hospital, retrospectively. Patients’ data were completed using a data linkage method and analyzed using SPSS version 23. Results: A total of 1956 patients were studied from the waiting list with a mean age of 44.7 ± 14.4 years (3-80 years). The described etiology reveals that the main causes of ESRD were unknown sources (44.1%), diabetes (18.4%) and hypertension (10.9%). Hemodialysis therapy was conducted for 91.1% of the patients. The maximum registered waiting time was 295 months and the minimum was one month, with an average of 63 months. The proportion of patients waiting for the first, second and third kidney transplantation was 86%, 13.2% and 0.7%, respectively. Conclusion: This study highlights that in the population under study, the number of registered patients on the waiting list followed an increasing pattern, while the age of patients decreased. Unfortunately, in most case studies in Iran, the true etiology of nephrology diseases is still unknown. More effort to define the ESRD causes is necessary. The most likely reason for reported cases with unknown etiology is delays in referral problems.