Renal Transplantation and Hyperuricemia

The adverse effects of hyperuricemia on renal function are of interest. Patients with a history of kidney transplantation are at the risk of hyperuricemia and its associated complications. Therefore, the identification and management of the factors that cause hyperuricemia in these patients can be helpful and may eliminate the need for taking uric acid-lowering drugs. This study aimed to determine the prevalence of hyperuricemia and its related factors in patients who underwent renal transplantation.

This analytical cross-sectional study was conducted on patients over 18 years of age who underwent kidney transplantation and referred to Mahdieh Clinic in Kermanshah, Iran, during 2019.  The sampling was performed using the available and purposeful method. Ethics code: KUMS.REC.1396.574 

This study was performed on 165 patients with renal transplantation. The prevalence of hyperuricemia in this study was obtained at 58.8%. The hyperuricemic patients had a lower glomerular filtration rate and higher proteinuria (P<0.05). High levels of uric acid were significantly associated with male gender, and the consumption of diuretic medications as well as immunosuppressive drugs, especially cyclosporine (P<0.05).

In this study, hyperuricemia was highly prevalent in patients with kidney transplantation and was associated with poorer kidney function. It seems that early diagnosis of hyperuricemia and the implementation of some actions, such as less diuretic usage and selection of immunosuppressive drugs with less hyperuricemic effects, can improve the function and survival of the transplanted kidney with fewer needs for the use of uric acid-lowering drugs.