Audit Of Kidney Fast Track Schemes Dec.pdf

The Kidney Advisory Group audited the Kidney Fast Track Schemes (KFTS) for donor after brain death (DBD) and donor after circulatory death (DCD) kidneys. The DBD KFTS started on 1 November 2012, and the DCD KFTS on 1 March 2013. The audit covered 42 months for DBD and 38 months for DCD kidneys.

Of 5,113 DBD kidneys offered, 20% were fast-tracked, and 58% of those resulted in a transplant. For DCD kidneys, 41% of 6,226 offered were retrieved, and 52% of those resulted in a transplant.

No significant differences in graft or patient survival were found for DBD kidneys transplanted through the KFTS versus the national scheme. However, significant differences were observed in delayed graft function (DGF) and estimated glomerular filtration rate (eGFR) at 3 and 12 months post-transplant.

For DCD kidneys, a borderline significant difference in patient survival and a significant difference in graft survival were found between kidneys transplanted through the KFTS and those transplanted through local or national allocation schemes.

The audit recommends continued regular auditing of the KFTS, now simpler due to national allocation schemes and centralized kidney offering.