Experimental pancreaticosplenic composite transplantation in the pig. Operative technique and assessment of graft function.

A large animal model for substitutive pancreaticosplenic composite transplantation with urinary drainage to the bladder has been developed in the pig. Transplantations were performed in 7 nontissue-typed donor-recipient combinations without immunosuppressive medication. Six recipients showed perfect graft function at least until the 5th postoperative day. Blood glucose, intravenous glucose tolerance tests and urine amylase concentrations proved to be sensitive markers of graft function. Scintigraphic follow-up examination with 99mTc tin colloid could only record perfusion of the splenic transplantation. With this model the role of the spleen in pancreaticosplenic composite transplantations can be studied in forthcoming experiments.