Evaluation of Sacks solution for hypothermic preservation of kidneys.

The efficacy of Sacks solution for hypothermic preservation of dog kidneys was determined. Complete ischemia was produced in one kidney for thirty minutes by clamping the renal pedicle in situ, followed by excision and immediate washout with the cold preservation fluid. Kidneys were stored in Sacks solution at 2 degree C. for forty-eight hours, reimplanted in the donor, and the normal, contralateral kidney was removed. Complete reversal of renal impairment with long-term survival was observed in 2 of 9 animals. Of 7 animals with graft failure, 2 showed the beginning of a tendency to reverse a rising serum creatinine at the time of death or sacrifice. In the remaining 5, creatinine rose unrelentingly until death or sacrifice occurred. The observed 22 per cent survival rate was significantly (p less than 0.05) less than the 83 per cent survival reported by Sacks, Petritsch, and Kaufman. Evidence suggestive of intrarenal deposits of MgHPO4-3H2O was found in 2 of 4 dogs sacrificed for graft failure. This raises questions of the solution's safety as well as its efficacy. We are unable to confirm the success of the original investigators with this new preservation solution.