Kidney transplants from living related donors having double inferior vena cava

Abstract

We performed four living related kidney transplantations from donors with double inferior vena cava (D-IVC), in which the left kidney was selected in two cases and the right in two cases. By dissecting the right internal iliac vein and isolating the right external iliac vein, the surgical procedure of the recipient side was so devised as to avoid any complications. In one patient, the surgical procedure of the donor side was modified to extend the donor left renal vein by anastomosis of part of the donor IVC to the renal vein. In the other case, no special treatment was necessary due to the patient's slender physique. In all four cases, transplants were successfully performed. The following conclusions can be made from these results: If the donor has D-IVC, it is essential to carefully conduct pre-operative examinations including angiography and venography to investigate other possible anomalies and blood flow of the renal vein. In addition, the graft must be carefully selected so that it is not disadvantageous to the donor. If there is no disadvantage to the donor as to which kidney is selected, the kidney with the longer renal vein should be transplanted.