Experience of the University of Barcelona

Abstract

Pancreas transplantation for the treatment of diabetes mellitus has proven increasingly successful in recent years. The handling of the exocrine pancreatic secretion has been a subject of controversy. Satisfactory results have een achieve with diversion to the stomach and the intestine [1,2]. However, one of the main problems of clinical pancreas transplantation is the lack of reliable technique for early diagnosis of rejection, particularly in non-simultaneous pancreas and kidney transplants where the only valid parameter has been an increase in the plasma glucose concentrations. A rise in plasma glucose levels ha been demonstrated to be a late indicator of pancreas allograft rejection, both experimentally and clinically [3]. Converesly, simultaneous kidney and pancreas transplantation from the same donor has the advantages of allowing the pancreas to be indirectly monitored for possible rejection by assissing kidney function through serum creatinine levels or renal biopsy.