Stewart et al. wanted to examine why there has been a steady increase in the percent of discarded kidneys from 5.1% in 1988 to 19.2% by 2009 where it leveled off until 2015. They looked at a variety of factors to see if the increase in discards could be attributed completely to older donor age or whether other factors are involved.

They found that:

• The donor age was a significant predictor of discards
• All of the factors included in KDRI were associated with higher discard
• If more kidneys had not been pumped, the discard rate would have risen more sharply

Overall, they found that pumping kidneys could improve outcomes and increase the utilization of some kidneys that are currently being discarded.

Read the full article here: https://doi.org/10.1097/TP.0000000000001539