Improved survival with renal transplantation for end-stage renal disease due to granulomatosis with polyangiitis: data from the United States Renal Data System
- PMID: 29760156
- PMCID: PMC6369412
- DOI: 10.1136/annrheumdis-2018-213452
Improved survival with renal transplantation for end-stage renal disease due to granulomatosis with polyangiitis: data from the United States Renal Data System
Abstract
Background: Renal transplantation is the optimal treatment for selected patients with end-stage renal disease (ESRD). However, the survival benefit of renal transplantation among patients with ESRD attributed to granulomatosis with polyangiitis (GPA) is unknown.
Methods: We identified patients from the United States Renal Data System with ESRD due to GPA (ESRD-GPA) between 1995 and 2014. We restricted our analysis to waitlisted subjects to evaluate the impact of transplantation on mortality. We followed patients until death or the end of follow-up. We compared the relative risk (RR) of all-cause and cause-specific mortality in patients who received a transplant versus non-transplanted patients using a pooled logistic regression model with transplantation as a time-varying exposure.
Results: During the study period, 1525 patients were waitlisted and 946 received a renal transplant. Receiving a renal transplant was associated with a 70% reduction in the risk of all-cause mortality in multivariable-adjusted analyses (RR=0.30, 95% CI 0.25 to 0.37), largely attributed to a 90% reduction in the risk of death due to cardiovascular disease (CVD) (RR=0.10, 95% 0.06-0.16).
Discussion: Renal transplantation is associated with a significant decrease in all-cause mortality among patients with ESRD attributed to GPA, largely due to a decrease in the risk of death to CVD. Prompt referral for transplantation is critical to optimise outcomes for this patient population.
Keywords: epidemiology; granulomatosis with polyangiitis; outcomes research.
© Article author(s) (or their employer(s) unless otherwise stated in the text of the article) 2018. All rights reserved. No commercial use is permitted unless otherwise expressly granted.
Conflict of interest statement
Competing interests: ZSW has received funding from a Scientist Development Award from the Rheumatology Research Foundation, a Fund for Medical Discovery Award from the Executive Committee on Research at Massachusetts General Hospital, and an NIH Loan Repayment Award.
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