Pediatric kidney transplantation procedures are performed at Tampa General Hospital for children who have reduced kidney function due to chronic kidney disease (CKD) or other causes. Since 1983, the experienced medical professionals in Tampa General Hospital’s Kidney Transplant Program have cared for children and adolescents who need transplants. As one of very few active kidney transplant programs in Florida that serves pediatric patients, TGH provides children who are experiencing (or who are at risk of experiencing) kidney failure with transplants from both deceased and living donors.
TGH’s Kidney Transplant Program is one of the busiest in the state. This volume has helped our team gain extensive experience and ensures that the vast majority of our kidney transplants are successful. According to the Scientific Registry of Transplant Recipients, our one-year pediatric kidney transplant survival rate and one-year graft survival rate are comparable to national averages.
It should be noted that pediatric kidney transplantation may not be the best course of action for every child with CKD or kidney failure. As such, every patient referred to our kidney transplant program will be carefully evaluated on an individual basis to determine if a transplant is the most effective treatment. Most patients who are selected are already on dialysis, but a transplant may also be performed preemptively for children who have irreversible kidney damage and are not yet on dialysis.
In evaluating a child for pediatric kidney transplantation, the first factor that our medical professionals examine is the kidney transplant referral form completed by the patient’s primary care physician or nephrologist. There may also be follow-up evaluations and lab tests completed at Tampa General Hospital to determine the best treatment option for the particular patient.
