How is the Kidney Transplant Procedure Done?

There are majorly two treatment options for damaged kidneys i.e. dialysis for purifying the blood and kidney transplant. Kidney transplant is one of the most significant treatments for kidney failure. It is the procedure of transplanting the damaged kidneys with the new and healthy ones. Oftentimes, the donors of the kidneys are either someone who has died or the ones who are living and have consented to donate his or her organ to the person in need. Considering the criticality of the nature of the surgery, it is for your best interest that you consult the best kidney transplant Surgeon like Dr. B.K. Upadhyay. Here in this article, we will understand the procedure of kidney transplant to comprehend what it is like to have a kidney transplant.

Step by Step Procedure of Kidney Transplant

The first and foremost thing with which the procedure of kidney transplant initiates is finding a suitable match of the kidney for the patient. Once the doctors and surgeons assure that a suitable match is found, the kidney transplant surgeons put the patient under general anaesthesia.

Upon giving anaesthesia to the patient, a team of doctors, surgeons and nurses supervise certain things of the patient including the oxygen level, the rate of heartbeats, blood pressure before and during the procedure. If everything is fine then the kidney surgeon starts the kidney transplant procedure.

The surgeon, initially, makes an incision in the lower part of the abdomen of the patient and puts new and healthy kidney inside the patient’s abdomen.

Keep in mind, that surgeons do not remove the damaged kidney from the patient’s body unless they root any complications to the patient. Some of the complications that make it obligatory to remove the damaged kidney include infections, discomfort and pain, hypertension and/ or kidney stones. If the patient does not have such complications, the damaged kidney stays inside the patient’s body.

The nephrologists attach the patient’s blood vessels of the lower part of the abdomen –either of the legs, to be precise – to the blood vessels of the new kidney. Furthermore, the surgeon also attaches the patient’s bladder to the ureter of the new kidney, which helps carry urine from the patient’s kidney to his or her bladder for storing the urine.

Once the surgery is done, the patient needs to stay in the medical facilities for a few days depending on the pace of his or her recovery. In several cases, the patients may require medications that might keep on for a few months, years or the rest of their life.