INTRODUCTION: This study aimed to evaluate and compare quality of life and surgical outcomes following laparoscopic donor nephrectomy (LDN) versus the standard open donor nephrectomy (ODN) technique. METHODS: This open-label randomized clinical trial was conductedat Imam Khomeini Hospital, Urmia, Iran, from 2022 to 2023). Ninety-one kidney donors were randomly assigned to the ODN (n = 46) or LDN (n = 45) group. Outcomes included hemoglobin changes, renal function, hospitalization length, operation time, time to return to normal activities, complications, and one-year quality of life (SF-36). Data were analyzed using t-tests and Chi-square tests (P .05). CONCLUSION: Although laparoscopic donor nephrectomy requires a longer operative time, it offers superior clinical benefits, including reduced blood loss, shorter hospital stays, and faster functional recovery. These findings support the adoption of the laparoscopic approach as the preferred standard of care for living kidney donors to optimize postoperative recovery.
Farshid et al. (Wed,) studied this question.