ABSTRACT
Renal allograft biopsies have been used as a good method for monitoring the evolution of kidney transplants for at least 20 years. Histological analysis permits differential diagnosis of the causes of allograft dysfunction to be made. Objectives: To correlate the data of urinalysis and serum creatinine with histological diagnosis of renal graft in a group of renal transplant patients. Design: Accuracy study, retrospective analysis. Setting: A university terciary referral center. Sample: 339 percutaneous allograft biopsies obtained from 153 patients. Blood and urine samples were obtained before the graft biopsy. Main Measurements: Laboratory evolution and hystological analysis (light microscopy, imunofluorescent eletronic microscopy). Results: Most of the biopsies (58.9 per cent) were performed during the first month post-transplant. An increase in serum creatinine was associated with acute tubular and/or cortical necrosis. Proteinuria and normal serum creatinine were associated with glomerular lesions. Non-nephrotic range proteinuria and an increase in serum creatinine were associated with chronic rejection. Conclusion: Evaluation of serum creatinine and urinalysis can be useful in suggesting the histological graft diagnosis.