Kidney Transplant: what can and will go wrong
For many kidney patients, a transplant is a chimaera of hope, the light at the end of the tunnel.
What they don’t tell you is that after about ten year from the transplant, the chances that your new kidney is still in place are about 50%.
Yes, in ten year half of the transplanted kidneys are rejected. In fact, for most patients the question is not if the kidney is going to be rejected, but when it’s going to be rejected. This means that one on four kidney transplant is a re-transplant.
I was lucky enough to avoid a kidney transplant even if I had stage 5 CKD. I’m sharing my story here because you never know what could save your life.
What you should be aware of when one of your kidneys is transplanted
Medication and side effects after transplant
After a transplant you’ll have to take medication for the rest of your life. These are extremely powerful medicines that will affect your whole immune system. Side effects are not just common, but to be expected.
After a kidney transplant, the most common side effects are:
- Vomiting
- Nausea
- Headache
- Diarrhoea
- Puffy face
- High blood pressure
- Anaemia
- High cholesterol
- Arthritis
- Weakened bones
- Weight gain
- Increased appetite
- Mood swings
- Trouble sleeping
- Tremors
- Skin problems
- Acne
- Unwanted hair growth
- Hair loss
Every patient has different background and conditions so you’re not going to experience all these symptoms. The response to the transplant can be very different from patient to patient.
Always tell your doctor which side effect are you experiencing, in some cases there could be a way to avoid some of them.
Why do Kidney Transplants fail
There are many risk in a kidney transplant. Still, before a kidney transplant, you will only read brochure about success rates and procedures. All the patients are convinced that their transplant will succeed.
But 6000 people will lose their transplanted kidney within three years from the transplant. They don’t know what to do.
Their families don’t know what to do. Nobody tells you what to do in case of rejection.
In some cases the transplanted kidney will stop working shortly after the transplant. Shock, disappointment and frustration are common. Some patient feels completely abandoned.
And in most of the cases, all they can do is start again the whole process to get on the waiting in the hope of a new transplant.
About the Author
Michaelw Hi, my name is Michael and in this blog I'm gonna share the story of how I got off kidney dialysis for good. Getting off dialysis isn't easy at all, and that's why I'm trying to help people as much as I can.
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