The value of intravenous immunoglobulin (IVIG) and simvastatin as potential modalities for the treatment of sensitized patients was evaluated by testing the efficacy of these agents on a relatively large cohort of adult hemodialysis patients (11) who were waiting for renal allotransplantation at our center. The patients had persistently positive crossmatches with their living related donors and a panel reactive antibody titer of more than 20%. All patients received IVIG (500 mg/kg per day on alternate days for a total of six doses); panel reactive antibody (PRA) titer and crossmatch testing were carried out after each dose and before each subsequent one. Two months after the last dose, eight patients received simvastatin (20 mg/day) for a period of 2 months; PRA titer and crossmatch testing were carried out every two weeks. Only four patients showed an insignificant reduction of PRA activity (P = 0.36); no patient attained a negative crossmatch. Simvastatin also resulted in an insignificant reduction of anti-human leukocyte antigen (HLA) antibodies in three patients (P = 0.32). We propose that IVIG or simvastatin alone can not effectively inhibit preformed anti-HLA antibodies to allow successful renal transplantation. Further trials on the use of IVIG and simvastatin with other modalities of treatment to desensitize these patients may be warranted.

Download full-text PDF

Source
http://dx.doi.org/10.1007/s11255-007-9229-3DOI Listing

Publication Analysis

Top Keywords

ivig simvastatin
12
intravenous immunoglobulin
8
modalities treatment
8
patients
8
panel reactive
8
reactive antibody
8
patients received
8
pra titer
8
titer crossmatch
8
crossmatch testing
8

Similar Publications

Want AI Summaries of new PubMed Abstracts delivered to your In-box?

Enter search terms and have AI summaries delivered each week - change queries or unsubscribe any time!