RENAL RESPONSES TO EXERCISE IN HEART AND KIDNEY-TRANSPLANT PATIENTS

There is a lack of information about renal responses in heart and kidn ey transplant patients after intense physical exercise. Eleven heart a nd ten kidney transplant recipients, as well as two control groups of healthy subjects, were given a maximum exercise test on a bicycle ergo meter. One control group was also given a moderate load corresponding to the peak load of the kidney transplant group. Blood and urine sampl es were collected before and after exercise and assayed for lactate, c reatinine, total protein, and albumin. The glomerular filtration rate remained stable at the end of exercise in the transplant patients, whi le there was a slight (17 %) decrease in the control group. Albumin ex cretion rates after maximum exercise attained a mean of 237 mu g.min(- 1) in the control group and a mean of 45 and 16 mu g.min(-1) respectiv ely, in the heart and kidney groups. Postexercise proteinuria seemed t o be related to the absolute intensity of the event, but kidney transp lant patients showed a reduced effect as compared to heart transplant patients. We conclude that short-term, maximum exercise in heart and k idney transplant recipients is not detrimental to kidney function.