Kidney Transplantation Evaluation and Referral in People with Lupus Nephritis-Related End-Stage Kidney Disease

End-stage kidney disease (ESKD) or kidney failure, occurs when the kidneys function below 10% percent of their normal ability, meaning that they are not functioning as they should, or they are not functioning at all. Once people reach ESKD, there are only two primary treatment options – dialysis and kidney transplantation. A new study examined access to early steps in the kidney transplantation process in people with lupus nephritis-related end-stage kidney disease (LN-ESKD). 

192,318 people with ESKD were identified from the United States Renal Data System (USRDS) after initiating dialysis or received a preemptive kidney transplant. Researchers looked at referral and evaluation start at the transplant centers to measure the association between LN-ESKD and people with other-ESKD. During the study period, 31% of people with other-ESKD and 58% of people with LN-ESKD were referred for transplant. The people with LN-ESKD were referred and started transplant evaluation at higher rates than those with other-ESKD, which was associated with higher rates of transplant access outcomes. 

Prior to this study, access to kidney transplantation among people with LN-ESKD was only measured by outcomes in the kidney transplant process, including waitlist and receipt of a kidney transplant, without considering barriers in access. Increasing access to kidney transplant referral before a diagnosis of ESKD would result in increased transplantation rates, better outcomes, and increased quality of life for people with LN. Learn more about kidney transplant for lupus.

Read the study