New Clinic Offers Access to Shorter Wait List for Kidney Transplantation

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Date:   February 17, 2010

New Clinic Offers Access to Shorter Wait List for Kidney Transplantation

More than 26 million American adults suffer from chronic kidney disease. Of these, more than 17,000 California patients are currently on a wait list for kidney transplantation. Wait lists for transplantation vary by geographical area. Patients in the Coachella Valley now have rapid access to UC San Diego Medical Center where wait times can be 40 percent shorter than in Los Angeles.

“Through a lifesaving partnership, our kidney transplantation team is now available to consult with patients at Eisenhower Medical Center, bringing kidney evaluation services closer to the patient,” said Alexander Aussi, transplant administrator for UC San Diego Medical Center. “This may be a critical option for patients who are on the waiting list at nearby hospitals and cannot wait five years for a kidney to become available within the Los Angeles organ bank.”

Healthy kidneys clean the blood by removing excess fluid, minerals and wastes. The two main causes of kidney disease are diabetes and high blood pressure, which are responsible for up to two-thirds of cases. High risk groups also include those with a family history of kidney disease.

When kidneys fail, treatment options include hemodialysis, peritoneal dialysis and kidney transplantation. Many patients feel that transplantation provides a better quality of life because it allows freedom from dialysis and is associated with increased energy and a less restricted diet. Kidney transplant should be considered for every patient on dialysis although not every patient is a candidate.

“Three simple tests can detect chronic kidney disease: blood pressure, urine protein and serum creatinine,” said Rodolfo Batarsé, MD, transplant nephrologist and clinical professor with UC San Diego Medical Center. “This monthly clinic at Eisenhower Medical Center offers a comprehensive onsite evaluation to determine a patient’s medical suitability for transplantation.”

In San Diego County, patients currently experience a three to five year wait for kidney transplantation depending on blood type. Shorter wait times are available if a living donor is identified. Patients within the Los Angeles organ bank can wait five to seven years.

UC San Diego Medical Center has performed kidney transplantation for more than forty years on more than 2,400 patients. The UCSD program recently recruited distinguished surgeon Alan Hemming, MD, as Chief of Abdominal Transplantation and Hepatobiliary Surgery. Integrating innovation with compassion, the UCSD program offers a wide range of minimally invasive surgical options such as single-incision and robotic techniques designed to offer patients a more rapid recovery with less scarring.

The transplantation process begins when patients, their physicians or their dialysis units contact the UC San Diego Center for Transplantation to schedule an evaluation.

For referral, please call 619-547-8612 or toll free 888-UCSD-KD3.

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Eisenhower Medical Center

Eisenhower Medical Center is a not-for-profit, comprehensive health care institution rated among the Top 5% of all Hospitals in the Nation for Clinical Excellence in 2009 by HealthGrades®, a leading independent health care ratings organization. Eisenhower’s campus includes the 313-bed Eisenhower Hospital, the Betty Ford Center at Eisenhower, the Barbara Sinatra Children’s Center at Eisenhower, and the Annenberg Center for Health Sciences at Eisenhower.  The medical center is renowned for its Centers of Excellence in Orthopedics, Cardiovascular at the Eisenhower Smilow Heart Center, Neuroscience at the Eisenhower Neuroscience Institute, and Oncology at the Eisenhower Lucy Curci Cancer Center.  Situated on 130 acres in Rancho Mirage, the medical center has provided a full range of quality medical and educational services for more than 35 years for residents and visitors to the greater Coachella Valley.  For more information, visit emc.org.

UC San Diego Medical Center

Since 1966, UC San Diego Medical Center has provided complex critical care to patients in the U.S. and globally through an integrated system of patient services provided at UC San Diego Medical Center – Hillcrest, Thornton Hospital, Moores Cancer Center, Shiley Eye Center, and the Sulpizio Family Cardiovascular Center scheduled to open in 2011. The two hospitals, UC San Diego Medical Center – Hillcrest and Thornton Hospital, operate under one license with a combined licensed capacity of 548 beds. As the only university health system in San Diego County and the region’s only academic medical center, its role is to take exceptional care of people by providing excellent and compassionate patient care, advancing medical discoveries and educating the health care professionals of tomorrow.

Media Contact: Jackie Carr, 619-543-6163, jcarr@ucsd.edu