Toward performing transplantation in highly sensitized patients.
Fuggle SV., Martin S.
Performing transplantation in highly sensitized patients represents a challenge for transplant units and organ exchange organizations. There are various approaches that can be adopted in order to transplant these patients, either through kidney exchange programs or by using desensitization protocols. In this article we discuss a number of these approaches, including the system currently used in the United Kingdom. The system encourages understanding of the patient's antibody profile and has resulted in a threefold increase in the number of highly sensitized patients undergoing transplantation.