Erythropoietin Treatment in the Sixth Posttransplant Month as a Prognostic Factor for Renal Allograft Survival

The purpose of this work was to assess the prognostic value of the need for erythropoietin (EPO) treatment at 6 months after transplantation. We retrospectively reviewed the outcomes of 143 consecutive cadaveric kidney transplants performed between January 2000 and April 2004, functioning at 6 months postransplantation. Patients were divided into two groups: group EPO6m (n = 24) received EPO treatment in the sixth month, and a control group (n = 119) did not receive EPO. Renal function deterioration (RFD) was considered to be a sustained decrease in creatinine clearance (CrCl) greater than 20% between the sixth month postransplant and the last visit. Mean follow-up was 38 ± 16 months. The mean ages of the donor (57 ± 9 vs 49 ± 12 years; P = .001) and the recipient (59 ± 12 vs 47 ± 17 years; P = .000) were greater in the EPO6m group. Delayed graft function (83% vs 48%; P = .001) was more frequent in the EPO6m group. At 6 months after transplantation the EPO6m group showed lower hemoglobin (11.52 ± 1.71 vs 13.32 ± 1.69 g/dL; P = .000), higher serum creatinine (2.31 ± 0.72 vs 1.65 ± 0.53 mg/dL; P = .000), lower CrCl (33.53 ± 10.83 vs 53.6 ± 17.58 mL/min; P = .000), and similar proteinuria. RFD was more common in the EPO6m group (38% vs 10%; P = .026), with a different pattern of evolution of CrCl (−0.098 ± 0.176 vs +0.093 ± 0.396 mL/min/mo, P = .000). Multivariate analysis demonstrated that treatment with EPO at 6 months was the only predictor of RFD (RR 4.46; 1.58 to 12.58; P = .005). The need for EPO at 6 months postransplant was a good predictor of later renal allograft deterioration, more sensitive than serum creatinine or proteinuria.