Health And Medical Doctrine

For those who are looking for a permanent way of curing their kidney failure, a transplant may be the only option. This can take months or years to finally get a kidney that is suitable for you and there may be complications afterwards, such as rejecting the transplant or infections. You only need one kidney transplants, since it will be strong enough to do the same work of two.

Kidney Transplant to Cure Kidney Disease

A surgeon will place a new kidney inside your abdomen and then connect the arteries and veins. There is no need to remove your damaged kidneys and the blood flow will be redirected into the new kidney to help your body work normally again.

It can take up to a few weeks for the kidney to work properly, but this is perfectly normal. The only time that your own kidneys will be removed is if they have caused an infection or you have high blood pressure because of them.

Preparing for a Kidney Transplant

There are many steps before you can receive a transplant and the process is not for everybody. You need to seriously talk with your doctor about your options.

You can sometimes gain a transplant from a friend or family member, since people can live with only one kidney. There are a number of factor that need to match to be able to use a kidney and if none of your prospective donors match, you will be placed on a waiting list.

The factors that need to match are your blood type, which is the most important of all three, your human leukocyte antigens and cross-matching antigens.

The first set of antigens do not need to be a complete match, as long as your blood types are. The second set of antigens are tested through a small blood sample. If there is no reaction then the antigens are a good match.

Timing for Kidney Transplants

If you have been given a kidney by a volunteer then your surgery can be planned as soon as possible.

However, it can take several years to find a matching donor if you are on the list since there are just not enough deceased donors as there are people who need the transplant.

The surgery itself takes around three or four hours and you will need to stay in the hospital afterwards for about a week. After that, you will need regular checkups.

Complications with Transplant Curing Kidney Disease

No matter how much the match between you and the donor are, there are still possibilities that you will reject the new kidney. This is usually due to not taking your medication as you were supposed to. This medication is meant to help stop your immune system from seeing the new kidney as a threat and start attacking it.

These medications will need to be taken the whole time that you have the new kidney and it is functioning. When this happens, you will need to go back on dialysis.

You are more likely not to reject the kidney if it has come from a living relative because both of your make-ups are very similar. Also, around 85 percent of transplants from donors who are deceased still work a year after the surgery.

Kidney Transplant Diet

Your diet will not be as strict as it is when on dialysis but you will still need to cut back on some food and ensure that others are eaten more. Higher protein food is still the best for you, which you can get in meats, chicken and fish.

You will need to take medication, which means that you may need to start counting your calories since the medication will cause weight gain. You may also need to cut down on the amount of salt that you easy because the medication could also cause high blood pressure, which salt intake can control.