Significance of CD4 T-Cell Adenosine Triphosphate Levels Monitoring in Elderly Renal Transplant Recipients

ObjectivesTo find the significance of CD4 T-cell adenosine triphosphate (ATP) levels in elderly renal recipients in correlation with drug doses, levels, and clinical parameters.MethodsDrug doses and levels, CD4 T-cell ATP levesl (162 sequential samples), and other clinical data were collected and assessed among 31 elderly renal recipients who underwent transplantations from November 2007 to March 2011.ResultsAmong subjects with stable clinical status, the main ATP levels pretransplantation were not significantly different from those posttransplantation: 302.4 ± 97.5 ng/mL versus 288.8 ± 102.6 ng/mL (P > .05). There was no relationship between ATP levels and tacrolimus concentrations or doses. In 12 patients experiencing infection, the ATP levels were significantly lower then those of subjects showing a stable clinical status: 127.3 ± 92.8 versus 288.8 ± 102.6 ng/mL (P < .01). Six patients with biopsy-proven acute rejection episodes did not show significantly higher ATP levels compared with those who were clinically stable: 26.2 ± 224.8 versus 288.8 ± 102.6 (P > .05).ConclusionsCD4 T-cell ATP levels were valuable to monitor immunosuppression among elderly renal transplant recipients.