Extracorporeal photopheresis (ECP), originally used to treat cutaneous T-cell lymphoma, also has been applied to the therapy of transplant rejection. Our aim was to investigate the biologic response in two children who underwent kidney transplantation with ECP as prophylactic treatment. They received conventional immunosuppressive therapy and ECP immediately after transplantation: six applications over the course of 3 weeks. During a 12-month follow-up, the clinical course was favorable in both patients; renal histology was normal 6 months after transplantation. When compared with four transplanted controls, the ECP-treated patients showed lower tumor necrosis factor-alpha serum levels in the short-term and a marked increase of Foxp3-positive T-regulatory cells. T-regulatory cells were still higher than in the controls 1 year after transplantation. These preliminary results suggest that the addition of ECP to standard immunosuppressive therapy induces a tolerogenic shift in the immune system of kidney transplanted patients and may pave the way to preventing chronic rejection.

Medical treatment of cystinuria is often disappointing. Patients undergo frequent surgery, which is often followed by early relapse. The aim of our study was to evaluate the efficacy of medical treatment of cystinuria, to prevent formation or to reduce the numbers and dimensions of renal stones. Twenty cystinuric patients were treated with a combined approach, including cystine-binding drugs. Free and bound urine cystine levels were measured every 4 months. Drug dosage was adjusted to maintain free urine cystine level below 100 micromol/mmol creatinine. Eighteen patients completed the study; detection of new stones was reduced from 0.28 per year to 0.03 per year, and, in six patients, the numbers and dimensions of pre-existing renal stones were reduced. Surgery was required in one subject, and no relapse was observed 12 months afterwards. The dosage required to achieve target levels was closely correlated with patient body weight: older children required a lower dose. Medical management of cystinuria is feasible. The treatment must be personalised in children, as the amount of drug required is strictly dependent on body size.

Limited and discordant data are available on cyclosporine A (CsA) treatment for proteinuria in Alport syndrome (AS). To address this lack of consistent data, we have studied 15 AS patients (14 males; mean age 15.3 +/- 6.0 years) treated with CsA. Patient selection criteria included a urinary protein/creatinine ratio > or =1 mg/mg and a creatinine clearance >40 ml/min/1.73 m(2). CsA treatment was started at an initial dose of 5 mg/kg/day and subsequently adjusted to reach target C2 levels of 500 ng/ml. Renal function, proteinuria, and blood pressure were monitored. Blood pressure was treated to avoid the administration of angiotensin converting enzyme or angiotensin receptor blockers for the first 2 years of therapy. The average follow-up was 3.5 years. Five patients had chronic renal failure at the beginning of treatment, of whom three and one reached end-stage renal failure within 1 and 3 years, respectively. In the remaining 11 patients, the glomerular filtration rate declined by 11 +/- 6% within 6 months, but remained stable thereafter. Proteinuria decreased by 63 +/- 21% from baseline, but returned nearly to baseline after 2.5 years of follow-up. Based on these results, we suggest that CsA is effective in reducing proteinuria in patients with Alport syndrome but that this effect is temporary. Our data do not support the use of CsA therapy for proteinuric patients with AS, particularly if they have chronic renal failure.

Renal function deterioration is a reason of concern in heart transplantation. Our aim was to evaluate long-term renal function in heart transplant children on cyclosporine (CsA) treatment and to investigate the effect of several variables possibly involved in renal function deterioration. Creatinine clearances were retrospectively reviewed in 50 children (median follow 99.7 months after heart transplant). Gender, age, and body weight at transplant, rejection episodes, CsA cumulative dose, and trough levels were analyzed. After an initial increase of the glomerular filtration rate (GFR), renal function worsened in most patients; 28% of the children developed renal insufficiency (defined as GFR <80 ml/min per 1.73 m2), which was already evident in the first 3 years. Neither CsA dose, trough levels, nor other patient characteristics were found to be associated with renal function deterioration. In this study renal failure occurred in one-third of the patients. The lack of association of CsA with renal insufficiency may be explained by several reasons, including the limitations of the retrospective design of the study. However, it is possible that the nephrotoxic effect of CsA is more likely to occur in a set of predisposed patients. These must be soon identified to evaluate early a calcineurin inhibitor-sparing strategy.