Perioperative Evaluation and Management of Living Donor Candidates

The evaluation and care of living kidney donor candidates must consider and minimize both perioperative and long-term risks for the donor. The comprehensive medical and psychosocial evaluation of living donor candidates is detailed across the chapters in this text. In this chapter, preoperative laboratory and testing recommendations are discussed along with the evidence for screening to reduce cardiac, pulmonary, venous thromboembolism and bleeding complications of donor nephrectomy surgery. Additionally, intraoperative and postoperative management to reduce adverse donor events, maintain high-quality outcomes, and improve efficiency is described. Finally, perioperative complications and expectations for return to predonation function for living kidney donors are reviewed.