General: Renal Transplantation

In this chapter the essential aspects of anesthesia for renal transplantation are discussed. Subtopics include the anesthetic considerations of diabetes and renal disease. Emphasis is placed on understanding electrolyte abnormalities in patients with renal failure and strategies for optimizing patients with renal disease. The patient discussed here is on dialysis. The chapter is divided into preoperative, intraoperative, and postoperative sections with important subtopics related to the main topic in each section. Preoperative issues discussed are assessment for chronic renal failure and hyperkalemia, and medications for renal failure and for transplantation. Intraoperative topics addressed include choice of anesthesia and monitors, and issues related to induction, maintenance, and graft attachment. Postoperative concerns discussed include oliguria and nausea.