This message contains images. If you don't see images, click here to view. Click here to advertise in this news brief. Mobile version  RSS  Subscribe  Unsubscribe  Archive  Media Kit Home   About AST   Education   Meetings & Events   Public Policy   Contact Us   Feb. 14, 2013   Registry analysis: Inferior early posttransplant outcomes for recipients of right versus left deceased donor kidneys American Journal of Transplantation (subscription required)    Share    Anatomical differences between right and left kidneys could influence transplant outcome. Receipt of a right kidney is a risk factor for inferior outcomes in the first year after transplantation. A higher incidence of surgical complications suggests the shorter right renal vein may be contributory. The higher susceptibility of right kidneys to injury should be considered in organ allocation. More  SOCIETY NEWS Live webinars Feb. 20, March 6 — free to AST members AST    Share    Two new webinars in the Timely Topics in Transplantation Webinar Series are now open for registration. "New Strategies in Hepatitis Management after Solid Organ Transplantation" airs on Wednesday, Feb. 20 at 2 p.m. EST. "Meeting the Challenges of Resistance" airs on Wednesday, March 6 at 1 p.m. EST. Visit www.a-s-t.org/t3 to register. The fee for non-members is only $25 per webinar. Invite your colleagues to join AST AST    Share    Strengthen the transplant community and get the opportunity to win an iPad or AST bucks when you invite your colleagues to join AST. Pay it forward and tell a colleague why you're a member. You'll help them grow personally and professionally, and you'll be recognized for your referral at ATC, on the AST website, and in AST eNews. For details and guidelines, click here. C1qScreen™: A New Research Tool for AMR Risk Identify Antibodies That May Compromise Graft Survival Detect Presence of Complement Fixing Antibodies Investigate risk of developing Antibody Mediated Rejection (AMR) Request a Complimentary Sample Kit! FREE SAMPLE For Research Use Only. Not for use in diagnostic procedures. Membership dues reminder AST    Share    If you have not yet remitted payment for your 2013 membership dues, please do so immediately to ensure that you continue to receive all of the benefits of membership with the AST, including discounted meeting registration. Your dues must be paid no later than April 1 in order to be eligible for member discounted registration rates to the American Transplant Congress in Seattle. Renewing your membership is easy. Simply log in to the AST website and click on "Renew My Membership" to pay your dues online. A confirmation email will be sent to you once your payment is processed.  COP CORNER COP Executive Committee call for nominations reminder AST    Share    Nominations are now being taken for executive committee open positions in 10 Communities of Practice (COPs). The deadline to submit nominations is Feb. 22. To nominate yourself or a fellow colleague, you (the nominator) and the nominee must both be a member of that specific COP. Nominees must be an AST member in good standing. If you need to verify your or the nominee's COP membership, please feel free to contact Jason Polinsky at jpolinsky@ahint.com with your membership verification request. To submit a nomination, simply follow the links to forms for the co-chair positions and committee member-at-large positions.   PRODUCT SHOWCASES Athena Diagnostics Genetic testing can be a cost-effective way to increase the number of living related donor transplants. Mutational analysis may help direct long-term treatment plans, including pre-operative screening of potential kidney transplant recipients and living related donors. WAVES by Waters Medical Systems ✓ Hypothermic preservation of a single kidney using physiologic pulsatile preservation and membrane oxygenation: a proven technology from Waters Medical Systems (more than 40 years clinical experience) ✓ Simplifies the perfusion process (provides more options to view, chart, and trend data, offers web-based remote monitoring, and a transportable design) ✓ Meets or exceeds current FDA standards and AOPO and UNOS Preservation Guidelines. MNX: Organ Transportation When it comes to saving lives, MNX understands organ transplant logistics. Every shipment is urgent, and every step critical. That’s why MNX offers specialty services that are tailored for organ transportation. From expedited ground service to charter flights, MNX has the proven experience and operational resources you can count on.  TRANSPLANT NEWS Low-dose steroids associated with milder histological changes after pediatric liver transplantation Liver Transplantation (subscription required)    Share    Controversy remains about the role of protocol liver biopsy for symptom-free recipients and about the long-term use of low-dose steroids after pediatric liver transplantation (LT). A recent national cross-sectional study examined pediatric recipients who underwent LT between 1987 and 2007. Researchers concluded continuing low-dose steroids indefinitely after pediatric LT may have a positive effect on the long-term histological state of the liver graft. More Radiation exposure high prior to kidney transplantation Renal & Urology News    Share    A study found kidney transplant recipients are exposed to large amounts of ionizing radiation from medical imaging as part of their pre-transplant evaluation. Dr. Anup M. Patel and colleagues at Saint Barnabas Medical Center in Livingston, N.J., reviewed the medical records of 172 kidney transplant recipients who underwent 905 medical imaging procedures involving ionizing radiation. Of these, 28 were exposed to high dose (more than 50 and up to 100 mSv) and 23 were exposed to very high dose (more than 100 mSv) cumulative effective radiation. . Related article: Ionizing radiation exposure among kidney transplant recipients due to medical imaging during the pretransplant evaluation (Clinical Journal of the American Society of Nephrology) More Outcome of pediatric heart transplantation recipients treated with ventricular assist device Pediatric Transplantation    Share    A recent study was conducted to evaluate the long-term prognosis of pediatric HTx patients treated with VAD before transplantation. The clinical data of six patients bridged to HTx with Berlin Heart EXCOR pediatric device were analyzed retrospectively. It is suggested that the prognosis of pediatric HTx patients treated with VAD before transplantation is not inferior to that of other HTx patients. More Post-chemo woman pregnant after ovary tissue transplant The Conversation    Share    For the first time ever in Australia, a woman whose chemotherapy rendered her infertile has become pregnant using ovarian tissue taken from her body before her cancer treatment, a new study reports. Chemotherapy commonly kills the eggs in a woman's ovaries but the radical new technique, which has only been successful in 20 cases world wide, offers new hope to women who hope to conceive after cancer treatment. Related article: First Australian pregnancy after ovarian tissue cryopreservation and subsequent autotransplantation (Medical Journal of Australia) More Significance of and risk factors for the development of central airway stenosis after lung transplantation American Journal of Transplantation (subscription required)    Share    Central airways stenosis (CAS) after lung transplant is a poorly understood complication. Objectives of a recent study were to determine if CAS was associated with chronic rejection or worse survival after transplant as well as to identify factors associated with CAS in a large cohort of lung transplant recipients. More Association between plasma cyclic guanosine monophosphate levels and hemodynamic instability during liver transplantation Liver Transplantation    Share    The activation of cyclic guanosine monophosphate (cGMP) production in patients with end-stage liver disease (ESLD) has been associated with hemodynamic instability during orthotopic liver transplantation (OLT). The aim of this prospective, observational study was to investigate the involvement of cGMP in the mediation of profound hypotension during liver graft reperfusion. More   FEATURED COMPANIES Put Science on Your Side Drug Monitoring Platforms since 1981. Learn More Exclusively Focused Transplant Pharmacy Therapeutics Transplant IV Biologics and Oral Immunosuppressives specializing in Desensitization and AMR Treatment and Prevention. MORE Hormonal imbalance in relation to exercise intolerance and ventilatory inefficiency in chronic heart failure The Journal of Heart and Lung Transplantation (subscription required)    Share    Skeletal muscle wasting is associated with altered catabolic/anabolic balance and poor prognosis in patients with chronic heart failure (CHF). A study recently evaluated catabolic and anabolic abnormalities in relation to disease severity in CHF patients. Researchers concluded enhanced catabolic status is significantly associated with exercise intolerance, ventilatory inefficiency and chronotropic incompetence in CHF patients, suggesting a significant contributing mechanism to their limited functional status. More Characterization and quantification of porcine circulating endothelial cells Xenotransplantation (subscription required)    Share    Endothelial damage is a critical step in the development of (xeno) transplantation-related and cardiovascular pathology. In humans, the amount of circulating endothelial cells (CEC) correlates to disease intensity and functions as a valuable damage marker. While (xeno) transplantation and cardiovascular research is regularly performed in porcine models, the paucity of antibodies against porcine endothelium epitopes hinders the use of CEC as damage marker. A recent study aimed to develop a method for porcine CEC detection using anti-human antibodies against porcine endothelium epitopes. More Donor risk factors, retrieval technique, preservation and ischemia/reperfusion injury in pancreas transplantation Current Opinion in Organ Transplantation (subscription required)    Share    Pancreas transplantation is still hampered by a high incidence of early graft loss, and organ quality concerns result in high nonrecovery/discard rates. Demographic donor characteristics, surgical retrieval strategy, preservation fluid and ischemia time are crucial factors in the process of organ selection and are discussed in this review. More   AST eNews Colby Horton, Vice President of Publishing, 469.420.2601 Download media kit Courtney Hodges, Content Editor, 972.402.2604    Contribute news This edition of the AST eNews was sent to ##Email##. To unsubscribe, click here. Recent issues Feb. 7, 2013 Jan. 31, 2013 Jan. 24, 2013 Jan. 17, 2013 7701 Las Colinas Ridge, Ste. 800, Irving, TX 75063