TRANSPLANTATION SURGERY 

Minerva Chirurgica 2015 February;70(1):57-62

Copyright © 2015 EDIZIONI MINERVA MEDICA

language: English

Controversies in pancreas transplantation

Chinnakotla S., Majumder K., Sutherland D. E. ✉

Department of Surgery, University of Minnesota, Minneapolis, MN, USA

Pancreas transplants are now highly effective for patients with diabetes mellitus. Improvements in outcomes have primarily been due to significant reductions in technical failures and immunological graft loss. In this short review we discuss three areas of controversy in the field of pancreas transplantation. Notwithstanding the controversies we have highlighted, in line with the American Diabetic Association position statement, simultaneous pancreas-kidney transplants and pancreas after kidney transplants should be routine for diabetic kidney recipients, and a pancreas transplant alone is appropriate for non-uremic labile diabetic patients.