Children's Kidney Transplant

Offering the state's only pediatric kidney transplant program, Children's Transplant, a part of Children's of Mississippi, is helping change young patients' lives by providing specialized care close to home. Children who need a new kidney and their families no longer have to worry about leaving friends and family or the doctors they've come to trust for the medical care they need.

Children's Transplant, along with University Transplant for adults, offers one of the shortest waiting times in the United States for those needing a new kidney. The United Network for Organ Sharing (UNOS) is responsible for transplant organ distribution at UMMC and throughout the United States.

• Learn more about our living donor kidney transplant program.
  • Complete our living donor kidney screening form.

Special attention close to home

Having transplant services available from Children's of Mississippi is vital because specially sized equipment and staff trained specifically in pediatric care make for better outcomes for young patients.

Thanks to our specialists who provide parents with appropriate counseling to plan for a child with kidney problems, renal replacement therapy (dialysis) can begin as soon as an infant is born.

• Children's of Mississippi offers the only pediatric dialysis program in Mississippi, which leads the nation with the highest chronic disease rate.

Pediatric transplant patients and their families attend an extensive education class, where they learn the necessary steps in planning for a transplant. The education process includes:

• Evaluation and testing
• Selection committee review and additional testing if needed
• Living donation (if applicable)
• Surgery
• Post-transplant clinics
• How to live with a transplant

Our recipients receive close follow-up care for the first three months after transplantation. At six months post-transplant, they can continue with a provider of choice, reducing travel expenses for out-of-town patients. Easy access to care for young patients is important to us. For those who live more than one hour from Jackson, we provide off-site accommodations in Grenada and Gulfport for evaluation services and immediate post-transplant care.

Current transplant recipients

University Transplant provides a variety of follow-up care and recommendations for patients receiving a donated kidney. Our follow-up team will help you to maintain your child's health and renew his or her lease on life.

In the first few months, you will bring your child to University Transplant for frequent check-ups. We'll review the medications they must take to prevent rejection of the new kidney, monitor the function of the new transplant, address any symptoms your child might may have and answer any questions that may arise. We will work closely with your child's local physician who will play an active role in his or her recovery.