Individuals with controlled hypertension can safely donate a kidney

Jul 2, 2021 | Olivia White | @oliviawhite

There are roughly 107,000 individuals on the transplant waiting list according to the Organ Procurement and Transplant Network (OPTN). Of those 107,000 individuals, roughly 90,000 of them are waiting for a kidney. There are many options for kidney transplant in comparison to other solid organ transplants like the heart. There is deceased donor kidney transplant, living donor kidney transplant, a non-directed living donor or kidney paired exchange. Even with all these options, a person can spend months or even years on the waiting list. In efforts to shorten the time someone spends on the waiting list, Mayo Clinic is leading the way to expand the donor pool and make more organs available for transplant. One of the most recent ways Mayo Clinic is leading that initiative is highlighted in a study recently published on kidney transplant donors with hypertension.

Previously, there was concern around transplanting kidneys from individuals with hypertension due to potential kidney or cardiovascular diseases in the donors. To avoid these concerns, many transplant centers do not allow individuals with hypertension to be kidney donors. However, Mayo Clinic has just completed a 20 year study finding that carefully selected individuals with hypertension can safely donate a kidney. Utilizing these donors significantly expands the potential kidney donor pool. Mayo Clinic was the first medical center in the world to accept living kidney donors with hypertension about 20 years ago. Niam Issa, M.D., a nephrologist at Mayo Clinic in Rochester and one of the study’s authors, explains how this is one of the first formal studies to be published with intermediate to long-term outcomes of donors diagnosed with hypertension. Dr. Issa believes the results of this study will have a major impact on the donor pool.

Currently, Mayo Clinic’s criteria for eligible living kidney donors with hypertension is strict, but donations from these patients may still be possible. Individuals with stage 1 hypertension (blood pressure 103-139/80-89 mm Hg) or stage 2 hypertension (blood pressure 140/90mm Hg or higher) are eligible to donate a kidney if they meet the following criteria:

40 yo + in White/Caucasian individuals or 45 yo + in African Americans, as they are at risk for developing hypertension at a younger age.
Well-controlled hypertension on a maximum of two medications
Absence of any target organ damage such as heart disease or proteinuria
Normal kidney function for age

The transplant team at Mayo Clinic researched the transplantation of these kidneys because extended criteria organs help expand the donor pool and shorten the time someone waits on the waiting list. Learn more about this study here.

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