Imaging Evaluation of Kidney Transplant Recipients

Renal transplantation is nowadays accepted as the treatment of choice for patients with end-stage renal disease. However, despite progress in immunosuppression and surgical techniques, various complications still can occur. Complications vary from vascular disorders and urologic diseases to parenchymal and immunologically related complications. The clinician evaluating the recipient with graft dysfunction has the option of choosing among a variety of imaging modalities including ultrasonography, nuclear medicine, computed tomography, and magnetic resonance imaging to start or continue the diagnostic work-up. In this article, we discuss the evaluation of the kidney transplant recipient using these imaging procedures, emphasizing the clinical diagnostic utility and role of each modality.