VIENNA (Reuters Health) - Researchers in Switzerland have found that kidney donors continue to have stable renal function for up to 10 years after undergoing nephrectomy.

Professor Gilbert Thiel, from the Department of Nephrology at Basel University Clinic, told Reuters Health that a prospective 10-year follow-up study of the kidney donors at all Swiss transplant centres showed that the great majority suffered no long-term health effects after donating a kidney.

Data on the kidney function of a total of 581 donors came from the Swiss Kidney Donor Health Registry, set up by Professor Thiel in 1993. For the study, the kidney function of donors was evaluated before the kidney transplants as well as 1 year after the donation and at 3, 5, 7 and 10 years.

Two thirds of the donors were women, while a little less than two-thirds of the recipients were men, reported Professor Thiel. Donors comprised parents, siblings or partners, in equal proportion.

The remaining kidney was usually found to be able to perform 75% of the functions of two kidneys and none of the kidney donors developed chronic renal failure.

Over a 7-year period, 11% of the kidney donors developed albuminuria. Albuminuria was mainly found in donors with untreated hypertension or in those whose remaining kidney compensated by more than 75% for the function of the donated kidney, leading to so-called renal hyperfiltration damage.

The study also found that the prevalence of hypertension steadily increased up to 37% of the kidney donors after seven years. However, Professor Thiel noted that hypertension was no more frequent in kidney donors than in the age-matched Swiss population.

"The remaining kidney does, though, seem to be more apt to develop hypertensive damage, if not treated, "said Professor Thiel. He recommended that kidney donors have regular medical check-ups to detect and treat hypertension and albuminuria.

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