BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE: @entity618 ( @entity2098 ) in combination with @entity205 or @entity1140 prevents acute rejection and chronic allograft failure in renal transplantation in Western countries. We began to add low-dose @entity2098 to primary cyclosporine immunosuppressive therapy in renal transplantation at the Department of Surgery of National Taiwan University Hospital in 1998. This study compared low-dose @entity2098 to conventional therapy in Taiwanese renal transplant recipients. METHODS: This retrospective cohort study determined the efficacy of low-dose @entity2098 therapy (1 g/day in divided doses). A total of 275 cases with allograft kidney transplants were grouped according to whether they received transplants before or after the adoption of @entity2098 therapy (Period I: 1987-1993; Period II: 1994-1997; Period III: 1998-September 2000). The prognostic significance of @entity2098 therapy and graft and @entity1 survival rate in each time period were assessed. RESULTS: The 18-month graft survival rate was 84.9% in Period I, 86.3% in Period II, and 91.9% in Period III. The 5-year graft survival rates in Periods I and II were 69.3% and 76.6%, respectively. Acute rejection was significantly detrimental to graft survival (p = 0.048), while @entity2098 therapy was significantly advantageous to graft survival (p = 0.015); treatment when @entity2098 was available was also significantly associated with better graft survival (p = 0.043). There was a negative correlation between acute rejection and graft survival (p = 0.035); @entity2098 therapy produced a protective effect on graft survival independent of acute rejection (p = 0.010). CONCLUSION: Low-dose @entity2098 therapy significantly improved graft survival after renal transplantation in Taiwanese kidney allograft recipients.

Efficacy of low-dose @entity618 therapy for Taiwanese renal transplantation XXXX receiving primary cyclosporine immunosuppression.

@entity1 :: ('9606', 'Species') :: ['patient'] @entity205 :: ('MESH:D016572', 'Chemical') :: ['cyclosporine'] @entity2098 :: ('CHEBI:8764', 'Chemical') :: ['MMF'] @entity618 :: ('MESH:C063008', 'Chemical') :: ['Mycophenolate mofetil'] @entity1140 :: ('MESH:D016559', 'Chemical') :: ['tacrolimus']
@entity1 :: (9606,Species) :: ['patients']
