Normothermic Ex Vivo Perfusion Before Transplantation of the Kidney (NEXT-Kidney): A Single-center, Nonrandomized Feasibility Study.

Background: There is conflicting evidence regarding the efficacy of normothermic machine perfusion (NMP) in suboptimal deceased donor kidneys. We aimed to assess the feasibility and short-term efficacy of brief preimplantation NMP in circulatory death (DCD) kidneys.

Methods: In this nonrandomized, single-center, prospective clinical trial, DCD kidneys underwent 1 to 3 h of NMP before implantation, aiming to achieve short ischemic times off NMP. The primary outcomes included feasibility and safety. Secondary outcomes included efficacy outcomes (delayed graft function and estimated glomerular filtration rate (eGFR) at 1, 6, and 12 mo), which were compared with the contralateral kidney that did not receive NMP.

Results: Eighteen DCD kidneys underwent NMP between 2020 and 2022, with at least 1 h completed in 16 (88.9%) of these kidneys (median 1 h); one kidney was removed after 5 min because of cannula failure and another at 54 min because of a sudden drop in blood flows. There was no episode of graft loss on the machine or postoperative vascular thromboses. All 18 kidneys were transplanted, with no cases of PNF or graft loss at 12 mo. Seventeen of the contralateral CS kidneys were transplanted. Compared with the contralateral kidneys, a lower incidence of delayed graft function (23.5% versus 64.7%; P = 0.046) was observed. There were no differences in the eGFR slopes between the two groups over time (P = 0.254).

Conclusions: NMP is safe, feasible and efficacious in the Australian setting, with this relatively small cohort demonstrating good early outcomes compared to CS alone in our study of DCD kidneys.