Browsing by Author "Gheith, Osama A."

Now showing 1 - 3 of 3

Characteristics of Patients With Banff Borderline Changes in Renal Allograft Biopsies
(Başkent Üniversitesi, 2009-12) Wafa, Ehab W.; Ghoneim, Mohamed A.; El-Agroudy, Amgad E.; El-Baz, Mahmoud; Gheith, Osama A.; El-Husseini, Amr; Abbas, Tarek M.
Objectives: The aim of this retrospective study was to characterize the patients who experienced borderline rejection. Materials and Methods: Patients with a minimum follow-up of 2 years were enrolled in this study. Forty-seven patients out of 106 patients with borderline rejection (after exclusion of those with associated chronic interstitial fibrosis) were compared with patients with acute cellular rejection grade 1 (n=650), and patients free of rejection episodes (n=444) regarding the different characteristics. Results: Patients aged 20 years or younger were frequently in borderline rejection group than other groups (which was statistically significant) (P = .001). Significant differences were found in recipient and donor ages, consanguinity, pretransplant blood transfusion, and immunosuppression plan. Most patients in borderline rejection group received triple immunosuppression therapy than other groups (P = .001). Univariate and multivariate regression analysis of different variables on graft survival in borderline rejection patients revealed that none of them was statistically significant. Conclusions: Borderline rejection is a frequent finding in biopsy-proven acute rejection after kidney transplant. Time of occurrence, frequency, treatment or not, and response to therapy were not predictors to graft survival.
Steroid Avoidance Reduce the Cost of Morbidities After Live-donor Renal Allotransplants: A Prospective, Randomized, Controlled Study
(Başkent Üniversitesi, 2011-04) Gheith, Osama A.; Ghoneim, Mohamed A.; Shokeir, Ahmed A.; Refaie, Ayman; Bakr, Mohamed A.; Nematalla, Ahmed H.
Objectives: Steroids have had the main role in renal transplant for more than 4 decades. However, chronic use of steroids is associated with many comorbidities, owing to a lack of assessing cost-benefit of steroid avoidance in live-donor renal allotransplants. In this prospective, randomized, controlled study, we aimed to assess the cost-benefit of a steroid-free immunosuppression regimen among Egyptian live-donor renal transplants. Materials and Methods: One hundred patients were randomly allocated to receive tacrolimus, mycophenolate mofetil, and steroids for only 3 days (n=50 patients; study group) or tacrolimus, mycophenolate mofetil, and steroids on a maintenance basis (n=50 patients; control group). All patients received basiliximab (Simulect) induction, with median follow-up of 12 months. Results: Both groups showed comparable graft and patient survivals, rejection episodes, and graft functioning. Posttransplant comorbidities were significantly more prevalent in the steroid-maintenance group. Hypertension was detected in 4% of steroid-free group versus 24% in the steroid-maintenance group (P = .0009). Posttransplant diabetes mellitus, serious infections, and hyperlipidemia were significantly more prevalent in the steroid-maintenance group (P < .05). Associated hospitalization costs were 2.2-fold higher in the steroid-maintenance group than they were in the steroid-free group. One year after transplant, the cost of managing posttransplant comorbidities was significantly higher in steroid-maintenance group, despite comparable costs of immunosuppression. Conclusions: In low, immunologic risk recipients of live-donor renal transplants, using basiliximab induction and maintenance with tacrolimus, mycophenolate mofetil, steroid avoidance was associated with lower first annual total costs despite comparable immunosuppression costs, which was attributed to lower costs of associated morbidities.
Steroid-Avoidance Immunosuppression Regimen in Live-Donor Renal Allotransplant Recipients: A Prospective, Randomized, Controlled Study
(Başkent Üniversitesi, 2007-12) Nematalla, Ahmed H.; Aghoneim, Mohamed; ELAgroudy, Amgad E.; Gheith, Osama A.; Bakr, Mohmed A.
Objectives: Steroids have occupied a major role in renal transplantation for more than 4 decades. However, chronic use of steroids is associated with numerous comorbidities. We sought to elucidate the safety and efficacy of a steroid-free immunosuppression regimen in live-donor renal transplant recipients. Patients and Methods: One hundred patients were randomized to receive tacrolimus, mycophenolate mofetil, basiliximab induction, and steroids only for 3 days (experimental group, n=50 patients) or tacrolimus, mycophenolate mofetil, basiliximab induction, and steroid maintenance (control group, n=50 patients,). The median follow-up was 12 months. Results: Patient and graft survival rates were 100% in both groups. The rate of biopsy-proven acute rejection was 16% in both groups. For patients in the control group, the mean serum creatinine level was 111.22 µmol /L compared with 110.39 µmol/L in patients in the experimental group. Posttransplant hypertension was encountered in 4% of the patients in the experimental group compared with 24% of the patients in the control group (P = .0009). Posttransplant diabetes mellitus was detected in 4% of the patients in the experimental group compared with 16% of the patients in the control group (P = .037). Posttransplant weight gain was reported in 6% of the patients in the experimental group compared with 15% of the patients in the control group (P = .001). The chronic allograft damage indexes of biopsy specimens at 1-year follow-up were comparable in both groups (2.48 vs 2.28, respectively) (P = .16). Conclusions: In living-donor renal transplant recipients with low immunologic risk, steroid avoidance (using basiliximab induction, tacrolimus, mycophenolate mofetil maintenance, and 3 days’ steroid treatment) is feasible, safe, and carries with it fewer morbidities compared with the same immunosuppressive protocol with steroid maintenance. Longer follow-ups are required to prove the safety of this regimen.