Kidney Transplant
The Kidney Transplant Program provides compassionate, state-of-the-art care to children with kidney disease. KIMS is one of the top kidney transplant centers in the country. We treat infants, children, teens and young adults from birth through age 21 for many types of short-term and chronic kidney disorders in our Nephrology Clinic. Nephrology is the branch of medicine that studies kidney functions and diseases. For children with kidney failure, we provide care before, during and after kidney transplant. We also have inpatient and outpatient pediatric dialysis services available. Dialysis is a way to remove waste from the blood when the kidneys are not able to function on their own. Your child will visit the Nephrology Clinic for most pre-transplant, post-transplant and dialysis appointments. The kidney transplantation surgery will also be performed at KIMS.
Bone Marrow Transplant
The Division of Pediatric Blood and Marrow Transplantation at KIMS is a well-recognized program dedicated to providing outstanding care and support to pediatric patients who can be helped by transplantation therapy. The program is known to be a leader in both established techniques and research initiatives. Using a variety of approaches the program has pioneered the use of both matched and mismatched umbilical cord blood stem cells in patients who do not have a sibling donor, thus extending this life-saving therapy to many more patients. The cord blood program allows us to identify unrelated donors quickly (generally within a few weeks). We know that sometimes quick identification can be very important for patients with inborn errors of metabolism, bone marrow failure, immunodeficiency syndromes, or advanced leukemias.The program provides transplant as a treatment option for a variety of acquired and congenital disorders of children and young adults including hematopoietic malignancies and solid tumors, inherited immune deficiency syndromes, bone marrow failure syndromes, and inherited metabolic diseases. Allogeneic and autologous bone marrow, peripheral stem cell and umbilical cord blood transplants have been performed for pediatric patients to treat these diseases.
Liver Transplant
Children need liver transplants because they have a disease or condition that has damaged the liver or caused it to work improperly. In rare cases, genetic diseases that do not cause liver injury but do harm other organs can be corrected with liver transplants. Some children require liver transplant in order to remove large tumors that can't be removed without taking out the whole liver. Children with these diseases or conditions may also need a liver transplant:Biliary atresia, Alagille syndrome, Primary sclerosing cholangitis, Hepatoblastoma and Acute liver failure. Some genetic disorders may also result in a liver transplant: Alpha-1-antitrypsin deficiency, Tyrosinemia and Wilson disease. If your child needs a liver transplant, he or she will need the expertise of physicians and other healthcare professionals in a variety of specialties. In addition to our transplant surgeons, KIMS has one of the nation's largest pediatric hepatology (the branch of medicine related to the study of liver disease) services. The transplant program is directed by full-time dedicated pediatric hepatologist who has extensive experience caring for both transplant patients and children with liver diseases.
Intestine Transplant
An intestine transplant is the process of removing a patient's diseased small intestine and replacing it with a healthy donor intestine. A transplant is the preferred method for restoring digestive function to a child whose small intestine is permanently failing. The transplant process requires extensive preparation and lifelong follow-up care. A common cause for intestinal failure in children is short bowel syndrome (SBS). There are a number of diseases and conditions that can lead to intestinal failure in children. For children with irreversible intestinal failure, KIMS has one of only a handful programs in the country that has specialists who can perform intestine transplants. We provide care before, during and after intestine transplant.
Lung Transplant
At KIMS, your child's team understands that a lung transplant is a time of hope but also concern for both your child and your family. Our program has been developed to address these concerns through strong integration with a number of highly-specialized initiatives at KIMS, such as the Cystic Fibrosis Center, Pulmonary Hypertension, Pulmonary Vein Stenosis, Infant Lung Disease and End-Stage Lung Disease programs. We have experts from additional sub-specialties throughout KIMS, who will join your child's care team as needed as well as child life specialists, psychologists, social workers and resource specialists who will be there to support your child and your family before, during and after transplant.
Heart Transplant
Illnesses that may lead to heart transplant in children include: complex congenital heart disease, a heart problem that is present from birth and cardiomyopathy, a disorder of the heart muscle that prevents it from squeezing properly. KIMS has a long history of advancing treatment for children with heart failure. Our heart transplant program was the first and remains the only program in our region to offer innovative treatments that include :
- Ventricular assist devices that allow children to wait until transplants become available.
- ABO blood group–mismatched transplants so babies don't have to wait as long for a transplant.
- Catheterization intervention combined with surgical techniques to help improve the health of children with heart failure, whether or not they need transplants later.
- Surgical techniques that use state-of-the art tissue typing, blood banking and immunological treatment so children who otherwise would not qualify for a heart transplant can undergo successful transplantation.
- Two-ventricle pacing devices that treat heart failure by improving the performance of a child's heart.
- Extracorporeal membrane oxygenation (ECMO) program for children that provides life support when a child's heart or lungs are not working properly or need a rest.