Category Archives: Transplant Surgery

General Surgery, Print Release, Transplant Surgery

PUBLISHED: Robotic-Assisted Laparoscopic Left Donor Nephrectomy for Living Kidney Donation

Robotic-Assisted Laparoscopic Left Donor Nephrectomy for Living Kidney Donation
Srilakshmi Atthota, MBBS; Jessica Grasso, PA-C; Leigh Anne Dageforde, MD, MPH
Massachusetts General Hospital

Kidney transplantation is the preferred treatment for patients with end-stage renal disease and is associated with a better quality of life and survival compared to other renal replacement therapies. Compared to deceased donor kidneys, living donor kidney donation is associated with shorter wait times, improved patient and graft survival, and the possibility of preemptive transplantation.

After the initial learning curve, robotic-assisted living donor nephrectomy has similar outcomes compared to open and laparoscopic nephrectomy, and in some settings an overall decreased length of stay. This article presents the case of a robotic-assisted living donor nephrectomy, including evaluation, technique, and considerations for the surgeon preoperatively and intraoperatively.

General Surgery, Print Release, Transplant Surgery

PUBLISHED: Left Laparoscopic Donor Nephrectomy

Left Laparoscopic Donor Nephrectomy
Shoko Kimura, MD; Tatsuo Kawai, MD
Massachusetts General Hospital

Over the past decade, laparoscopic donor nephrectomy has gradually replaced the conventional open approach and has become the standard of care in living donor kidney transplantations. Compared to open nephrectomy, laparoscopic nephrectomy reduces postoperative pain, shortens the length of hospital stay, and improves the cosmetic outcome. This article illustrates the author’s technique of pure laparoscopic donor nephrectomy.

General Surgery, Preprint Release, Transplant Surgery

Preprint Release: Recipient Kidney Transplant from a Living Donor

Recipient Kidney Transplant from a Living Donor
Massachusetts General Hospital

Maggie L. Westfal, MD, MPH
General Surgery Resident
Massachusetts General Hospital

Nahel Elias, MD, FACS
Transplant Surgery Department
Massachusetts General Hospital

The patient in this case is a 56-year-old female with a past medical history of type I diabetes mellitus, hypertension, hypothyroidism, hyperlipidemia, and end stage renal disease secondary to diabetic and hypertensive nephropathies. In this video, Dr. Nahel Elias performs the recipient side of a living related kidney transplant from the patient’s sister.