How life develops after a kidney transplant, proper rehabilitation

For complete rehabilitation and normalization of human life after kidney transplantation, patients after surgery are under the supervision of a specialist.

The main task of dispensary observation is a constant assessment of the patient's clinical condition, the quality of the functioning of the transplanted kidney, the correction of doses of immunosuppressant medications, the diagnosis and treatment of complications of the postoperative period.

After the patient is discharged from the hospital, he will need to visit the doctor regularly to monitor blood pressure, weight, diuresis and body temperature. Constant increase in blood pressure may be a sign of chronic rejection and stenosis of the artery transplanted kidney.

Reducing diuresis, swelling formation may indicate a development of a crisis of rejection or nephropathy, accompanied by a deficiency in the kidney. Also, the causes of increased pressure may be infectious lesions.

The main task of clinical examination of patients is an evaluation of the functioning of the transplanted graft, because the main complication of the postoperative period may be rejection, which affects the functioning of the transplanted kidney. The earlier this complication is revealed, the more chances are kept for its suppression. It is not necessary to be limited only to definition of level of a creatinine and urea. It is required to perform a filtration speed setting in the glomeruli, which allows to determine the quality of the organ's work at the moment.

The average length of stay in a hospital after a kidney transplant is one to two weeks. The doctor prolongs the terms of being in hospital conditions with the development of complications.

Patient care after operation

During the recovery period immediately after the kidney transplant surgery in the hospital, it is required:

1. Begin gradually to get out of bed and move on the next day after the end of the surgery.
2. The patient should breathe deeply and cough ten to twenty times per hour. Thus, the lungs will start to function better and will soon normalize their work after the operation.
3. Drugs are required. Suppress the work of the immune system of the human body. Because they reduce the risk that the body will begin to reject the kidney of a person.

After returning home, the following rules must be observed in order to ensure the correct recovery of the body:

• Take medications inscribed by a doctor. Steroid medicines are needed to reduce the risk of inflammation in the new kidney. Diuretic medicines are required to activate the excretion of excess fluid from the body.
• The patient should periodically visit a physician to examine the functioning of a new kidney. For this, tests and examination of the doctor are performed.
• Every morning we need to weigh, try to measure the amount of fluid consumed and the amount of urine released.
• It is required to limit the use of proteins and salt.
• It is required to refuse drinking alcoholic beverages for at least a year after the operation.
• It is compulsory to follow all the instructions of your doctor.

After completion of the recovery processes in the body, the patient gets the opportunity to return to normal work and normal activities.

Most often, the kidney function is restored after the application of anastomosis, but a full normalization of the body takes several days, manifestations of kidney failure disappear after a few weeks, and therefore, in the postoperative period, several hemodialysis courses are required. Therapy, suppressing the work of immunity, should be carried out in accordance with generally accepted rules in medicine.

Complications after surgery

A patient with a transplanted kidney should visit a doctor if the following symptomatology occurs:

• Febrile - may be a symptom of infection or rejection.
• Tumor, redness of the operating wound, bleeding from it.
• Severe pain in the area of ​​the operative incision - may also indicate a rejection or infectious lesion.

The most frequent manifestations of rejection of a transplanted kidney are fever and pain of the transplanted organ. If conducted biochemical blood tests indicate an increase in the concentration of creatinine, there is an increase in blood pressure, then we can also talk about kidney rejection.

Sometimes the symptoms of rejection are similar to other medical conditions, so if you have any health problems you need to visit a doctor who will give additional advice after organ transplantation in a specific situation. Life expectancy after kidney transplantation under condition of successful operation does not change in any way.

Nutrition after operation

After kidney transplantation, a strict diet is required, especially in the early rehabilitation period. But to maintain a normal state of health, it is recommended that you follow the diet in the following period. Particular care must be taken to track body weight. From the diet should be excluded fatty, floury, salty, sweet, spicy and grapefruit.

Consumed foods should contain many vitamins. A full list of recommended products is made by the attending physician depending on the specific situation, because the food varies depending on the state of health.