Optimising hypothermic kidney graft perfusion preservation

Kidney graft preservation relies on hypothermia. Compared to static cold storage, hypothermic perfusion improves both short and long-term post-transplant outcomes. Nevertheless, improvement is still needed as ischemic injury still occurs. Actively oxygenating the kidney during hypothermic perfusion has been shown beneficial but many questions regarding the effects and implications of oxygenated hypothermic perfusion remain. This thesis will examine whether oxygenated hypothermic perfusion improves long-term post-transplant outcomes, whether there are parameters that can predict outcome and whether preservation time can be safely increased.