The number of transplant centers using donor kidneys from hepatitis C patients has tripled, according to a study published Sept. 12 in Journal of the American Society of Nephrology.
Before 2018, most infected kidneys were given to patients who already had the viral infection, CNN reports. Since then, about 75 percent of infected kidneys have gone to patients who didn't have hepatitis C. The new study suggests that patients receiving infected kidneys had similar outcomes as those given normal kidneys.
Though more than 100,000 Americans are waiting for a donated kidney, the United States throws away at least 3,500 donated kidneys every year. The study authors contend that the Kidney Donor Profile Index Calculator needs to be revised to reflect evidence that organs from infected donors function just as well as uninfected ones, CNN reports.
Study author Vishnu Potluri, MD, nephrology fellow at the University of Pennsylvania in Philadelphia, said they will have to monitor how infected kidneys function long-term. "We will keep an eye on how a patient's immune system is reacting and what other effects may be happening," he told CNN.
Before 2018, most infected kidneys were given to patients who already had the viral infection, CNN reports. Since then, about 75 percent of infected kidneys have gone to patients who didn't have hepatitis C. The new study suggests that patients receiving infected kidneys had similar outcomes as those given normal kidneys.
Though more than 100,000 Americans are waiting for a donated kidney, the United States throws away at least 3,500 donated kidneys every year. The study authors contend that the Kidney Donor Profile Index Calculator needs to be revised to reflect evidence that organs from infected donors function just as well as uninfected ones, CNN reports.
Study author Vishnu Potluri, MD, nephrology fellow at the University of Pennsylvania in Philadelphia, said they will have to monitor how infected kidneys function long-term. "We will keep an eye on how a patient's immune system is reacting and what other effects may be happening," he told CNN.