Introduction:

Kidney transplantation is the optimal renal replacement therapy, dependent on various factors such as donor, recipient, and sociodemographic conditions for optimal functioning.

Objective: To assess the effect of donor and recipient sex during the first year post-transplant on hemoglobin values.

Material and Method:

A retrospective cohort study of kidney recipients from 2014 to 2019 was conducted at the Hospital de Especialidades of Centro Médico Nacional Siglo XXI (Mexico City). All transplant recipients were included, excluding those who died, experienced graft loss, or were lost to follow-up at the institution. Donor and recipient sex and age, type of renal donor (living or deceased), hemoglobin before renal transplant, hemoglobin at one-year post-transplant, and serum creatinine were studied.

Results:

A total of 914 patients were analyzed, with 109 excluded for various reasons, resulting in 805 patients who completed the 12-month follow-up. In cases of male-to-female donations, the median recipient hemoglobin at 12 months was 15.2 g/dL with an interquartile range (IQR 25-75) of 13.7-16.0 g/dL; male-to-male donations had a median of 15.2 g/dL (IQR 25-75 13.4-16.6 g/dL); female-to-female donations had a median of 14.0 g/dL (IQR 25-75 12.4-15.3 g/dL), and female-to-male donations had a median of 13.5 g/dL (IQR 25-75 12.5-14.8 g/dL).

Conclusions:

Hemoglobin levels do not appear to be influenced by nephron mass, as with other graft functions (creatinine clearance). Hemoglobin regulation is associated with the recipient's sex.