Background: Acute rejection and graft function have not been completely clarified in early-steroid-withdrawal (ESW) patients. The objective of this study was to compare the effect of early steroid withdrawal on GFR, graft survival/rejection in recipients in a cohort treated with tacrolimus/mycophenolate mofetil compared to a control cohort.
Material and method: Retrospective cohort, in 60 low immunological risk recipients between December 2005 and July 2010. Study cohort (ESW-C N=32), steroid withdrawal was carried out after 5 days, while they were receiving tacrolimus/mycophenolate mofetil. The control cohort (C-C, N=28) received prednisone/tacrolimus/mycophenolate mofetil. Clinical, biochemical and histological variables were assessed at baseline and after 3, 6, and 12 months of follow-up. Kaplan-Meier and the Cox proportional hazards model were used to assess survival. Comparisons between cohorts were carried out by the Student's t and c2 tests.
Results: At follow-up, C-C displayed significantly higher systolic (125 ± 10 vs. 114 ± 8) and diastolic (81 ± 8 vs. 72 ± 7) blood pressure, serum glucose (96 ± 13 vs. 86 ± 10), triglycerides (177 ± 61 vs. 129 ± 34), total (183 ± 43 vs. 148 ± 34) and LDL-cholesterol (100 ± 22 vs. 87 ± 25). C-C had a higher proportion of antihypertensive (57 vs. 13%), and statins (27 vs. 9%) use. eGFR was better in ESW-C than in C-C (85.4 ± 20.6 vs. 70.6 ± 17.0, p=.004). AR frequency was lower in ESW-C.
Conclusions: Graft survival, GFR, AR rate and metabolic profile were better in the ESW-C than in C-C.