An Optimized Method of Venous Anastomosis for Right Donor Kidney Transplantation in Rat

BackgroundInsufficient length of right renal vein (RV) increases the difficulty of venous anastomosis and blocks the promotion of transplantation of both kidneys, which could significantly reduce operative time and donor numbers. This study sought to discover a quick, safe method of venous anastomosis for right kidney donation.MethodsThree venous anastomotic methods (n = 20 in each group) were used for right donor kidney heterotopic transplantation: End-to-side, vena cava bypass, and modified end-to-end, namely, harvesting the right donor kidney with a part of the vena cava and then anastomosing the proximal end to the recipient RV followed by a ligation of the distal end. The conventional end-to-end venous anastomosis was used for left donor kidney orthotopic transplantation as a control (n = 60). We compared operative times and complications.ResultsThe operative time of the modified end-to-end group (18.45 ± 0.69 minutes) and end-to-side group (17.95 ± 1.54 minutes) were both less than the vena caval bypass group (32.60 ± 2.84 minutes); (P < .05), but equal to the control group (17.60 ± 1.89; P > .05). The overall complication rate among the modified end-to-end group (2/20) was less than those for the end-to-side (8/20) and vena caval bypass groups (9/20; P < .05), but similar to the control group (7/60; P > .05).ConclusionA modified end-to-end technique is the preferred venous anastomotic method for right donor kidney transplantation.