What to Expect

University Hospitals Transplant Institute Team Ensures a High Rate of Surgical Success

When possible, live donor kidney transplant surgery is performed using advanced minimally invasive techniques. This speeds recovery times for the living donor and recipient and reduces postoperative pain and complications.

Scheduling Surgery at a Convenient Time

While many kidney transplants are dependent on deceased donor organs and take months to years to schedule, surgery for living donor kidney transplant may be scheduled at a convenient time for donor and recipient.

At UH Transplant Institute’s Living Donor Kidney Transplant Program, both the donor and the recipient are seen at the hospital 1-2 weeks prior to the scheduled surgery date. At that time, they meet the surgeon; review what happens before, during after transplantation surgery; and ask any questions. The donor and recipient may also get updated bloodwork and chest x-rays at this time.

Donors may stay in the hospital for 1 – 2 days after surgery, while recipients stay 4 – 7 days after the transplant. The transplant surgery usually takes about three hours.

All living donor kidney transplant surgeries are performed at University Hospitals Cleveland Medical Center in Cleveland, Ohio.

Follow Up Care

Doctors from UH Transplant Institute follow living donors for two years post-donation. Living donors are seen two weeks after donation by a surgeon and then by a nephrologist (kidney doctor) at six months, one year and two years after donation. Follow up is important to ensure that living donors have not developed any risk factors for kidney disease. All living donors must have an established relationship with a primary care physician for follow up care on an annual basis for the rest of their lives.