Hospital in Nigeria carries out first renal transplant

The Delta State University Teaching Hospital (DELSUTH) Oghara has carried out its first kidney transplant. The surgical team included the state governor, Dr. Emmanuel Uduaghan.


Speaking at a press conference held after theh surgery, the governor said the procedure was successful.

In his remark, the Chief Medical Director of DELSUTH, Dr. Leslie Akporiaye said the kidney transplant was a new innovation in the hospital disclosing that the operation lasted for a few hours. He added that the hospital is prepared to do more.

Renal transplantation has become the treatment of choice for most patients with end-stage renal disease (ESRD). At present, more than 82,000 patients are waiting for kidney transplants in the United States. Marked improvements in early graft survival and long-term graft function have made kidney transplantation a more cost-effective alternative to dialysis.

Before the advent of immunosuppression, renal transplantation was limited to human leukocyte antigen (HLA)–identical (HLA-ID) siblings and was not applicable to the vast majority of patients with ESRD. The introduction of combined azathioprine-steroid therapy in 1963 produced encouraging results and became the mainstay of immunosuppression. Although this therapy improved the results of transplantation, acute rejection and complications associated with steroid therapy persisted.