Abstract: PO2100
Economic and Insurance Outcomes for Living Kidney Donors and Matched Comparators in Korea
Session Information
- Transplantation: Clinical - Allocation, Evaluation, Prognosis, and Viral Onslaughts
November 04, 2021 | Location: On-Demand, Virtual Only
Abstract Time: 10:00 AM - 12:00 PM
Category: Transplantation
- 1902 Transplantation: Clinical
Authors
- Park, Sehoon, Seoul National University College of Medicine, Seoul, Korea (the Republic of)
- Kang, Eunjeong, Ewha Womans University Seoul Hospital, Seoul, Korea (the Republic of)
- Kim, Yaerim, Keimyung University School of Medicine, Daegu, Daegu, Korea (the Republic of)
- Kim, Yong Chul, Seoul National University Hospital, Jongno-gu, Seoul, Korea (the Republic of)
- Kim, Yon Su, Seoul National University College of Medicine, Seoul, Korea (the Republic of)
- Lee, Hajeong, Seoul National University Hospital, Jongno-gu, Seoul, Korea (the Republic of)
Background
Although studies have reported kidney donation’s adverse health outcomes, its socioeconomic impact on living donors requires further study.
Methods
We performed a retrospective observational cohort study including a matched control group. We included 1,285 living kidney transplant donors from seven tertiary hospitals and a matched control group consisting of the same number of health screening examinees with similar baseline clinical and socioeconomic status from 2003 to 2016. Changes in employment status and household income were identified from the linked claims database, which includes employment and economic status information. The outcomes were compared between the donor and matched control groups on an annual basis using multivariable logistic regression analyses adjusted for various clinicodemographic characteristics.
Results
The median ages of the donors and matched controls were 45 and 46 years, respectively; 44.6% of the sample was male. The living donors were at higher risk of being unemployed or struggling to maintain employment during the first two years after donation [e.g., first-year loss of employment, odds ratio (OR) 2.27 (1.55–3.33)]; however, this situation did not persist, compared with the matched control group. The donors also showed significantly lower odds for improvement in economic grades [OR 0.57 (0.47–0.71)] or higher odds for deterioration in financial status [OR 1.54 (1.23–1.93)] than the control group in the first year and succeeding time periods.
Conclusion
Live kidney donors may suffer from poor employment or low economic status even after their altruistic donation. Whether an advanced reimbursement program can reduce these disincentives should be further evaluated.