Chronic Kidney Disease in Solid-Organ Transplantation

As the long-term survival of nonrenal solid-organ transplant recipients continues to improve, more complications related to transplantation occur. Among the most serious is chronic kidney disease (CKD). Although CKD was previously thought to only clinically affect a minority of this population, closer measurements of kidney function and monitoring of CKD complications now show that CKD will affect a significant number, if not a majority, of transplant recipients-particularly the long-term survivors who often have excellent function of their primary allograft. This article will review the incidence, risk factors, treatment, and outcomes of patients who develop CKD after heart, liver, and lung transplantation.