Adverse impact of hypertension on diabetic recipients of transplanted kidneys.

The effect of hypertension on patient and allograft survival in 60 diabetic recipients of transplanted kidneys was assessed by retrospective chart analysis. Hypertension was present in 81% of recipients. Of eight of these patients who became normotensive after transplantation, all had functioning allografts and one died. By contrast, persistent hypertension after transplantation was associated with a higher mortality rate (25 of 54, 48%) and loss of kidney graft function (19 of 54, 35%). At a mean of 21 months after transplantation, living hypertensive diabetic recipients had worse renal function (mean serum creatinine of 3.1 mg/dl) than did nonhypertensive recipients (mean serum creatinine of 1.6 mg/dl). It is concluded that hypertension is a significant risk factor for diabetic patients and kidneys after transplantation.