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Although life expectancy of kidney donors is thought to be normal, long-term follow-up data are limited. These researchers from the University of Minnesota sought to determine the health status of the 3698 people who had donated kidneys at their institution between 1963 and 2007.
Eleven donors developed end-stage renal disease (ESRD) during an average of 22 years after donation, and 268 donors (7%) died during follow-up. The adjusted incidences of both ESRD and death were similar to those in the general U.S. population. A random sample of 255 donors underwent measurements of renal function and quality of life at an average of 12 years after donation: At that point, mean serum creatinine level was 1.1 mg/dL, 86% of donors had glomular filtrat…