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Patient Support and Education
Most people are born with two kidneys. They are bean-shaped organs located in the middle of the back, on either side of the spine. Each kidney weighs about five ounces and is about the size of a fist. One kidney, functioning at 20% capacity, can:
- Clean your blood and remove waste products through the formation of urine
- Balance fluids in the body by controlling water and salt concentrations
- Maintain the balance of the body's chemicals (potassium, calcium, magnesium and phosphorus)
- Control blood pressure
Many diseases, like diabetes and high blood pressure, can cause your kidneys to malfunction, and may lead to kidney disease or failure.
Kidney transplant quality and results
- More than 10,000 kidney transplants are performed each year.
- 95% of people who have kidney transplants are alive after one year, compared with a 90% survival rate after the first year of dialysis.
- If a transplanted kidney is given by a living donor, the transplantation success rate is higher than if the kidney came from a deceased person. The survival of the transplanted kidney itself is 75% to 85% at one year when it is from a deceased, unrelated donor, as compared to over 90% when the kidney is donated by a living person.
D-H Transplantation Surgery outcome data
The Scientific Registry of Transplant Recipients (SRTR) publishes detailed statistics about the results experienced by Dartmouth-Hitchock transplantation patients.
View the latest SRTR report for Mary Hitchcock Memorial Hospital on the SRTR website.
Learn more about kidney disorders and transplantation
Follow the links below to read articles in our Dartmouth-Hitchcock Healthwise® Health Encyclopedia. Learn more about Healthwise® on our Health Encyclopedia page.
- Kidney transplant
- Acute kidney injury (acute renal failure)
- Chronic kidney disease
- Dialysis
- Peritoneal dialysis
- Transplant rejection
Organ transplant support organizations
Questions and answers about kidney disorders and transplantation
- How safe is transplantation surgery?
- How might my diet impact my health?
- If I suffer from kidney failure, should I start dialysis?
- Is a kidney transplant right for me?
- If I receive a transplant, will I need to take antirejection medicines?
- How effective are kidney transplants?
- What is the typical transplantation process at D-H?
- What medical tests are performed in connection with a kidney transplantation?
- What do I need to do after I am referred to D-H Transplantation Surgery?
- What is kidney surgery like at D-H?
- What can I expect after I receive kidney transplant?
Page reviewed on: Oct 30, 2018
Page reviewed by: Michael F. Daily, MD, MS, FACS