Anatomical variations of the renal arteries and renal transplantation

This study reports a retrospective analysis of the details of the anatomy of the renal arteries of 403 kidney donors and the arterial complications related to 513 subsequent kidney transplants in our transplant unit. Multiple renal arteries occurred bilaterally in 10.2% of donors and unilaterally in 20.8%, a total incidence of 31%. There was a higher incidence of vascular‐related complications following transplantation of kidneys with multiple renal arteries. Attention is drawn to the need for careful technique in identification of multiple renal vessels, especially aberrant vessels, at the time of donor nephrectomy and also to the different techniques available for anastomosis of multiple renal arteries in kidney transplant recipients.