Effectiveness of Thymoglobulin Induction Therapy in Kidney Transplant From Deceased Donor With Mild to Moderate Acute Kidney Injury

Background: The clinical benefit of rabbit antithymocyte globulin (Thymoglobulin) compared with basiliximab for induction therapy in kidney transplant (KT) resulting from acute kidney injury (AKI) donors remains controversial. In cases of severe AKI, the degree of kidney injury is too great to reveal influence of different induction therapies on clinical outcomes. We aimed to compare clinical outcomes of Thymoglobulin and basiliximab induction therapy in KTs from deceased donors (DDs) with mild to moderate AKI. Methods: We retrospectively studied 147 patients who received KTs from DDs between 2009 and 2017 in our center; 91 patients received kidneys from AKI donors. The AKI severity was classified based on the Acute Kidney Injury Network (AKIN) staging, and patients with AKIN stage 3 (43 patients) were excluded. Clinical outcomes were compared according to the type of induction therapy. Results: Thymoglobulin and basiliximab induction groups showed no significant differences in demographic and baseline characteristics except donor age and follow-up period. The Thymoglobulin group had lower incidences of acute rejection and a trend toward a lower incidence of delayed graft function and better graft survival than the basiliximab group. There was no significant difference in BK infection rate; however, cytomegalovirus infection rate showed a trend toward a lower incidence in the basiliximab group. Conclusions: In cases of KT from AKIN stage 1 and 2 donors, Thymoglobulin showed better clinical outcomes than basiliximab, although it had a somewhat high rate of cytomegalovirus infection. It seems beneficial to use Thymoglobulin induction therapy in KTs from DDs with mild to moderate AKI.