News and Events. People and Stories. Research and Innovation. What is transplant rejection, and can we teach the body to tolerate a donor organ? Everyone who receives an organ transplant has an immune reaction that can cause organ rejection. August 31, By Staff Writer. University of Minnesota Health is home to one of the oldest, most successful transplant programs in the world.
Learn more about our renowned care. What is transplant rejection—and what causes it? To prevent rejection, transplant recipients take medications that suppress the immune system in order to prevent it from attacking a donor organ. Have there been recent medical advances in this area? Your research with Dr. Jenkins is focused on predicting organ rejection.
Can you tell us more? Learn more about University of Minnesota Health lung transplant care. What potential does this research have for improving outcomes in patients? These medicines are called immunosuppresants or anti-rejection drugs and must be taken for the entire life of your graft. These can be controlled in most cases by medication.
This is a risk you will need to be aware of throughout the life of your graft. The onset of rejection does not mean your organ will be lost, but prompt treatment is critical. The symptoms of rejection depend on the type of transplant you have. Rejection is quite common in the early stages following a transplant. It can occur any time but most commonly takes place within the first 6 months.
Rejection may be mild or acute, and in most cases can be controlled if treated promptly. Many episodes are picked up by blood tests during outpatient visits. The symptoms depend on the transplanted organ or tissue. For example, patients who reject a kidney may have less urine, and patients who reject a heart may have symptoms of heart failure. A biopsy of the transplanted organ can confirm that it is being rejected. A routine biopsy is often performed periodically to detect rejection early, before symptoms develop.
When organ rejection is suspected, one or more of the following tests may be done before the organ biopsy:. The goal of treatment is to make sure the transplanted organ or tissue works properly, and to suppress your immune system response. Suppressing the immune response may prevent transplant rejection.
Medicines will likely be used to suppress the immune response. Dosage and choice of medicines depends on your condition. The dosage may be very high while the tissue is being rejected. After you no longer have signs of rejection, the dosage will likely be lowered. Some organ and tissue transplants are more successful than others. If rejection begins, medicines that suppress the immune system may stop the rejection.
Most people need to take these medicines for the rest of their life. Even though medicines are used to suppress the immune system, organ transplants can still fail because of rejection. Chronic rejection is the leading cause of organ transplant failure. The organ slowly loses its function and symptoms start to appear.
This type of rejection cannot be effectively treated with medicines. Some people may need another transplant. Call your doctor if the transplanted organ or tissue does not seem to be working properly, or if other symptoms occur.
Also, call your doctor if you have side effects from medicines you are taking. You will likely need to take medicine to suppress your immune system for the rest of your life to prevent the tissue from being rejected. Being careful about taking your post-transplant medicines and being closely watched by your doctor may help prevent rejection.
0コメント