In-Depth Topic Review

Nephrology
American Journal of

Am J Nephrol 2017;46:380–389 Published online: November 7, 2017

DOI: 10.1159/000482014

A Review of Anesthetic Effects on Renal

Function: Potential Organ Protection
Negar Motayagheni a Sheshanna Phan b Crystal Eshraghi b Ala Nozari c
       

Anthony Atala d  

a Institute
for Regenerative Medicine (Wake Forest Institute of Regenerative Medicine), Wake Forest School
of Medicine Medical Center Boulevard, Winston-Salem, NC, USA; b Department of Anesthesiology, Division of
 

Molecular Medicine, UCLA David Geffen School of Medicine, Los Angeles, CA, USA; c Department of Anesthesia,
 

Critical Care and Pain Medicine, Massachusetts General Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA;
d Institute of Regenerative Medicine, Wake Forest School of Medicine, Winston-Salem, NC, USA
 

Keywords tion. Some anesthetic drugs induce anti-inflammatory, anti-

Anesthetic drugs · Ischemia-reperfusion injury · Volatile necrotic, and anti-apoptotic effects. A more thorough
anesthetics · Organ protection · Transplant · Intravenous understanding of anesthetic effects on renal function can
anesthetics · Lipid emulsion · Propofol · Cardioprotection · present a novel approach for developing organ-protective
Renal protection strategies. The aim of this review is to discuss the effects of
different anesthetic drugs on renal function, with particular
focus on IR injury. Many studies have demonstrated the or-
Abstract gan-protective effects of some anesthetic drugs, specifically
Background: Renal protection is a critical concept for anes- propofol, which indicate the potential of some anesthetics
thesiologists, nephrologists, and urologists, since anesthesia to introduce novel organ protective targets. This is not sur-
and renal function are highly interconnected and can poten- prising, since lipid emulsions are major components of pro-
tially interfere with one another. Therefore, a comprehensive pofol, which accumulating data show provide organ protec-
understanding of anesthetic drugs and their effects on renal tive effects against IR injury. Key Messages: Thorough un-
function remains fundamental to the success of renal surger- derstanding of the interaction between anesthetic drugs
ies, especially transplant procedures. Some experimental and renal function remains fundamental to the delivery of
studies have shown that some anesthetics provide protec- safe perioperative care and to optimizing outcomes after re-
tion against renal ischemia/reperfusion (IR) injury, but there nal surgeries, particularly transplant procedures. Anesthet-
is limited clinical evidence. Summary: The effects of anes- ics can be repurposed for organ protection with more infor-
thetic drugs on renal failure are particularly important in the mation about their effects, especially during transplant pro-
context of kidney transplantation, since the conditions of cedures. Here, we review the effects of different anesthetic
preservation following removal profoundly influence the re- drugs – specifically those that contain lipids in their struc-
covery of organ function. Currently, preservation proce- ture, with special reference to IR injury.
dures are typically based on the usage of a cold-storage solu- © 2017 S. Karger AG, Basel

© 2017 S. Karger AG, Basel Negar Motayagheni, MD

Institute for Regenerative Medicine (WFIRM)
391 Technology Way, Wake Forest School of Medicine Medical Center Boulevard
E-Mail karger@karger.com
Winston Salem, NC 27101 (USA)
www.karger.com/ajn E-Mail nmotayag @ Wakehealth.edu, negar.motayagheni @ yahoo.com
 Introduction General Anesthesia

Renal ischemia/reperfusion (IR) injury is a leading Volatile Anesthetics

cause of preoperative acute kidney injury (AKI), which Volatile anesthetics are administered to many patients
frequently complicates major vascular, cardiac, trans- subjected to general anesthesia and are an integral part of
plant, and liver surgeries [1]. AKI has been shown to oc- the perioperative period. Methoxyflurane was the first
cur after some major surgeries, raising questions regard- nonflammable halogenated volatile anesthetic gas syn-
ing the role of the operative procedures – including the thesized [3]. Methoxyflurane caused dose-dependent ab-
administration of anesthesia and its effects on renal func- normalities post-surgery, including vasopressin-resistant
tion [1]. polyuria, serum hyperosmolality, hypernatremia, in-
There is contradictory evidence regarding the effects creased concentrations of serum urea nitrogen and inor-
of anesthetics on renal function. Some studies have ganic fluoride, and decreased urinary potassium, sodium,
shown that the administration of some types of anesthe- osmolality, and urea nitrogen concentrations, with clini-
sia during surgery, as well as surgical stress itself, can af- cal toxicity at dosages greater than 90 μmol/L [14]. Con-
fect renal function. Indirect effects are more pronounced sequently, nephrotoxicity induced by methoxyflurane
than the direct effects [2]. However, other studies have was generalized to all halogenated anesthetics. However,
shown that some anesthetic drugs induce anti-inflam- most third-generation inhaled anesthetics are effective
matory, anti-necrotic, and anti-apoptotic effects that and safe [4].
protect against AKI [3]. This raises several questions, in- Fluorinated anesthetics, specifically sevoflurane and
cluding: Can anesthetics attenuate or prevent renal IR enflurane, did not cause deterioration of postoperative
injury? What are the possible mechanisms? How does renal function in patients with preexisting renal issues
the anesthetic technique influence patient outcomes af- [15]; none of the patients needed dialysis or had perma-
ter renal transplantation? Can we repurpose them as or- nent deterioration of renal insufficiency. Furthermore,
gan-protective agents? both animal and human studies have demonstrated that
Identifying appropriate anesthetic technique for renal neither the duration of systemic fluoride exposure nor the
procedures, especially transplantations, is vital (Table 1). fluoride peak values corresponded to anesthetic nephro-
In particular, novel interventions that protect against IR toxicity [3]. In fact, the metabolism of enflurane to inor-
injury are needed to improve early graft function after ganic fluoride during and after surgery did not cause a
kidney transplantation. Available general and local anes- clinically significant level of renal disease or dysfunction
thetics, including third generation inhaled anesthetics, [16].
propofol, and amide-class local anesthetics, are effective Accumulating data show protective effects of some
and safe with a low incidence of side effects. Anesthetics volatile anesthetic drugs against IR injury [17, 18]. In a
seem to exhibit an organ-protective potential via multiple study analyzing data from the past 15 years, pre-injury
different mechanisms, including reducing IR injury administration of a volatile anesthetic was shown to de-
(Fig. 1) [4]. Some researchers propose that these anesthet- crease the impact of IR injury on the heart, brain, and
ics prevent the uncontrolled opening of the mitochon- kidney [19]. Other data demonstrated that volatile agents
drial permeability transition pore after ischemia, which administered shortly after injury can decrease IR injury
leads to the release of pro-apoptotic factors and necrotic [20].
cell death [5]. In particular, propofol, a widely used anes- Additionally, Darwin’s theory of evolution led to the
thetic, has shown potential as a novel organ-protective concept of preconditioning, a mechanism in which brief
agent through its efficient membrane-targeted and cyto- sublethal periods of ischemia provide protection from a
protective effects [4]. This is not surprising since lipid subsequent lethal episode of ischemia and mitigate the
emulsions are major components of propofol, which ac- effect of IR [21]. Subsequently, the organism or the tissue
cumulating data show provide organ protective effects will acquire an “injury-resistant” phenotype for a certain
against IR injury in many organs, such as the heart, kid- period [22]. Interestingly, brief periods of ischemia at the
ney, liver, and intestines [6–13]. onset of reperfusion are associated with cardioprotection,
In this review, we summarize the research history on leading to a decrease in myocardial infarction size [23].
the effects of anesthetic drugs on kidney function, includ- Similarly, isoflurane has been shown to improve remod-
ing cellular mechanisms of anesthetic-mediated protec- eling after coronary artery occlusion in rats [24]. Precon-
tion in different organs (Table 2). ditioning is now a well-established property of volatile

Anesthetic Effects on Renal Function Am J Nephrol 2017;46:380–389 381

DOI: 10.1159/000482014
Table 1. Overview of common anesthetic agents with their primary physiological and adverse effects

Drug Action Adverse effects

Volatile anesthetics
Methoxyflurane Analgesic Respiratory and cardiovascular system depression, renal damage no longer
available for use in the United States
Sevoflurane Anesthetic Raises intracranial pressure
Enflurane Anesthetic Increased risk of seizure activity, malignant hyperthermia
Isoflurane Anesthetic Moderate to severe airway irritability if used as an induction agent
Intravenous anesthetics
Ketamine Anesthetic Analgesic Psychomimetic effects post-surgery
Dexmedetomidine Anesthetic Analgesic Use with caution in patients with preexisting cardiac conduction defects,
bradycardia, hypovolemia
Propofol Anesthetic Respiratory and cardiovascular system depression
Regional anesthetics
Bupivacaine Analgesic Cardiotoxicity
Lidocaine Analgesic

anesthetics, specifically of sevoflurane; these anesthetics Furthermore, sevoflurane can impair kidney function;
are recommended as the agents of choice by the ­American the inorganic fluoride ions resulting from its defluorina-
Heart Association for high-risk patients. Preconditioning tion and the production of compound A from the reac-
and postconditioning with sevoflurane exert a significant tion with carbon dioxide absorbent have been associated
protective effect against IR injury in the rat lung trans- with nephrotoxicity [28, 29]. Fluoride levels following the
plantation model [25]. administration of isoflurane or halothane increase by 3–5
Other volatile anesthetics exhibit promising post-con- and 1–2 µmol/L, respectively, causing the risk of nephro-
ditioning properties after cardiac surgery. At the basic toxicity to be relatively improbable. Comparatively, des-
level, the myocardial protective effects of sevoflurane in- flurane’s resistance to biodegradation allows even pro-
volve apoptotic mRNA inhibition, neuromodulation, cy- longed exposure to be associated with normal renal func-
tokine/inflammation modulation, redox-sensitive path- tion [28]. In a recent study, researchers stored porcine
ways, endothelial preservation, ion channels, and notch kidneys in the preservation solution Celsior, which was
signaling pathways [26]. These findings open a new field saturated with argon or xenon. Argon-Celsior showed
of investigation for potential therapies aimed to diminish promise in renal transplant preservation by improving
secondary organ injury, as well as transplants. However, early functional recovery, graft quality, and survival, in
more studies are required to assess the magnitude of col- comparison to Xenon-Celsior [30].
lateral protection of other organs. Recent studies have shown that volatile anesthetics
Additionally, researchers have looked at the possibility provide protective effects during and after ischemic and
of adding volatile anesthetics to preservation solutions inflammatory conditions that occur in the perioperative
for renal transplantations. Such anesthetic management period by modulating IR injury and inflammation [3, 15,
aims to maintain the optimum perfusion pressure of the 16, 31]. Researchers found that isoflurane provides pre-
renal allograft in order to preserve its function. Both sevo- conditioning renoprotective effects through anti-inflam-
flurane and enflurane have been shown to undergo bio- matory and anti-apoptotic actions in a rat model [32].
degradation into inorganic fluoride. Evidence of renal Isoflurane may be protecting against renal tubular necro-
concentrating ability and renal tubular injury with tran- sis and inflammation by inducing renal tubular CD73
sient impairment was found in patients who received and adenosine generation, which is dependent on trans-
sevoflurane and enflurane [27], as a serum fluoride con- forming growth factor-beta 1 [33]. Similarly, sevoflurane
centration of 50 µmol/L is the peak nephrotoxicity value. pretreatment enhanced hypoxia-inducible factor-2α ex-

382 Am J Nephrol 2017;46:380–389 Motayagheni/Phan/Eshraghi/Nozari/

DOI: 10.1159/000482014 Atala
 Color version available online
Anesthetics
• Volatile
• Regional
• Intravenous

Mitochondria
NF-κB Antiapoptotoc
pathway
iNOS Mitochondria
mPTP opening
Ca2+ Anti
SOD Altered inflammatory
myocardial Ca2+ pathway
flux
ROS Openning of
mitoKATP channel GOX FOX

ATP Apoptotic Neuro GLUT 4

Mitochondria mRNA modulation

Lipid raft
Inflammation Endothelial
modulation preservation

Notch signalling

Attenuated Recovery
Preconditioning Cytoprotective
oxidative from Ca2+
to IRI effect
stress overload

Organ-protective effect
of anesthetics during IRI

Fig. 1. Hypothesized mechanisms for pro-

tective effects of anesthetics.

pression in a mouse model of renal IR injury [34]. An- that sevoflurane preconditioning significantly lessened
other study showed that xenon protects against AKI by the postoperative rise of transaminase levels in patients
activating miR-21 target signaling pathways [35]. undergoing liver resection [37]. Furthermore, a short pe-
Additionally, a recent study simulating liver trans- riod of sevoflurane preconditioning in patients undergo-
plantation in rats investigated the mechanisms by which ing coronary artery bypass graft surgery was shown to
volatile anesthetics yield their organ protective effects, significantly decrease both the release of a myocardial
comparing the protective and antioxidant properties of contractile dysfunction marker and the levels of plasma
sevoflurane and isoflurane [36]. It was found that sevo- cystatin C concentrations [38]. These findings suggest
flurane had significantly better protective and antioxi- that sevoflurane causes improvements in renal and car-
dant effects during both cold preservation and the early diac function following major surgery. Additionally, a re-
phases of organ reperfusion in comparison to isoflurane, cent study suggested that during the early postoperative
suggesting the differential protective effects of common period following kidney transplantation, the estimated
volatile anesthetics [36]. glomerular filtration rate improves significantly when
There is significant clinical evidence for volatile anes- living donors are anesthetized with a volatile anesthetic,
thetic-mediated organ protection. A recent study showed as compared to with propofol [39]. The protective effects

Anesthetic Effects on Renal Function Am J Nephrol 2017;46:380–389 383

DOI: 10.1159/000482014
Table 2. Proposed interactions and mechanisms of anesthetics

Drug Proposed interactions

Volatile anesthetics
Methoxyflurane Nephrotoxicity [14]
Sevoflurane No deterioration of renal function [15]
Protective effect against IR injury [24]
Nephrotoxicity due to production of inorganic fluoride ions and Compound A
Preconditioning renoprotective effects [30]
Enflurane No deterioration of renal function [15]
Isoflurane Preconditioning renoprotective effects [28]
Protected against renal tubular necrosis and inflammation by inducing renal tubular CD73 and adenosine
generation [29]
Intravenous anesthetics
Ketamine Ameliorated the up-regulation of inflammatory pathways and reduction of metabolism caused by
hypoxia [33]
Dexmedetomidine Inhibited oxidative stress and inflammation [53]
Propofol Reduced renal IR injury in rat model [40]
Significantly reduced the incidence and severity of AKI in comparison to sevoflurane [48] and
midazolam [49]
Pretreatment prevented decrease in renal function and an increase in tubular apoptosis by inhibiting
oxidative stress [42]
Pretreatment protected cells against apoptosis induced by IR [46]
Modulated systemic inflammation from IR by decreasing expression of nuclear factor-κB [43]
Mitigated renal IR injury via heme oxygenase-1 expression induction [44]
Attenuated post-AOLT AKI via inhibition of Cx32 function [63]
Promising renoprotective agent in renal transplantation [54]
Regional anesthetics
Bupivacaine Lower toxicity for the recipient and renal allografts during renal transplantation [57]
Lidocaine Lower toxicity for the recipient and renal allografts during renal transplantation [57]
Protection against IR injury via miRNA dysregulation prevention [60]

of volatile anesthetics were also evaluated in a recent One study determined that volatile anesthetics, such as
study that investigated the mechanisms of IR injury, and isoflurane, provide IR injury protection by attenuating
identified one such mechanism as intracellular calcium both inflammation and necrosis [41]. Another study
overload. It was suggested that such anesthetics may pro- showed that preconditioning with xenon had a protec-
tect the myocardium from IR injury by altering myocar- tive effect by preventing renal IR injury from progress-
dial calcium fluxes, preserving myocardial energetics, ing to AKI due to its natural induction of hypoxia-in-
and protecting the region from reactive oxygen species ducible factor, thus yielding potentially important clini-
injury [40]. The relatively higher efficiency of enflurane cal applications [42]. Furthermore, another study
and halothane in comparison to isoflurane regarding investigating histological tubular cell damage in a rabbit
these effects has been explained by their effect on myo- model found that desflurane preconditioning reduced
cardial cells: halothane and enflurane primarily decrease renal IR injury via its protective effect on the kidneys
intracellular calcium levels by directly acting on the sar- [43].
coplasmic reticulum, while isoflurane only decreases Although some volatile anesthetics attenuate AKI,
transsarcolemnal calcium entry (Fig. 1) [40]. multiple studies have shown that propofol, an intrave-
Recently, various studies have shown the protective nous anesthetic with anti-inflammatory properties, may
effects of volatile anesthetics in terms of renal IR injury. attenuate AKI more effectively.

384 Am J Nephrol 2017;46:380–389 Motayagheni/Phan/Eshraghi/Nozari/

DOI: 10.1159/000482014 Atala
 Intravenous Anesthetics of inducible nitric oxide synthase, and phosphorylation
Renal IR injury is a risk factor for acute renal failure of inhibitor of κB and nuclear factor-κB [58].
and delayed graft function. Pathogenic factors for renal Propofol may protect cells against apoptosis induced
IR include, but are not limited to, the following: oxidative by IR through a preconditioning effect. In one study, pro-
stress, inflammation, cellular necrosis, and apoptosis pofol attenuated IR injury in LLC-PK1 cells when pre-
[44]. Some anesthetic drugs induce anti-inflammatory, sented either 1 or 24 h before IR or during the recovery
anti-necrotic, and anti-apoptotic effects through differ- period but not when it was added only during ischemia.
ent mechanisms [3]. In a recent study, researchers intra- This effect may have been partially mediated by KATP
venously administered ketamine into fetal sheep before channels [59]. In addition, propofol pretreatment may
inducing hypoxia. Ketamine ameliorated the upregula- modulate bone morphogenetic protein 2 expression to
tion of inflammatory pathways and reduction of metabo- reduce renal oxidative injury and facilitate repair follow-
lism caused by hypoxia [45]. Furthermore, thiopental ing IR injury [60].
pretreatment reduced renal IR injury induced by free rad- In a comparison between patients receiving propofol
icals [46, 47]. Reinforcing this finding, dexmedetomidine or sevoflurane during cardiopulmonary bypass, propofol
has been shown to decrease brain IR injury and inhibit significantly reduced the incidence and severity of AKI
nuclear factor-κB and intercellular adhesion molecule 1 (which was defined using the AKI network criteria as an
expression through the inhibition of oxidative stress and absolute increase in serum creatinine of 0.3 mg/dL, an
inflammation, which are pathogenic factors of IR injury increase ≥150% from the baseline value, or as a urine out-
[48] put of <0.5 mL/kg/h for >6 h within 48 h postoperative)
However, the majority of research studies have fo- in comparison to sevoflurane [61]. This suggests that
cused on the non-anesthetic effects of propofol, such as propofol may be a better renoprotective agent for cardio-
its antioxidant, immunomodulatory, analgesic, and neu- pulmonary bypass than sevoflurane. No relevant clinical
roprotective effects [47]. Propofol has been shown to complications occurred with either anesthetic method,
have protective effects against IR injury in multiple or- and other postoperative outcomes (such as intensive care
gans, including the heart, kidneys, liver, and intestines unit [ICU] stay and in-hospital mortality) were similar
[6–13, 49–52]. between the 2 groups. AKI that occurred in patients who
The antioxidant abilities of propofol significantly re- received propofol was confined to the lowest stage of the
duced IR injury in a rat model of renal IR [53]. Research- AKI Network criteria, while AKI that occurred in pa-
ers have shown that pretreatment with propofol attenu- tients who received sevoflurane varied across the disease
ated the characteristic decrease in renal function and an spectrum. In fact, significantly more patients receiving
increase in tubular apoptosis in male rat kidneys subject- sevoflurane displayed severe renal dysfunction and re-
ed to IR. Propofol protected cells from apoptosis by in- quired dialysis. Measured perioperative changes in se-
hibiting oxidative stress and the corresponding down- rum biomarkers of renal injury and inflammatory me-
stream pathways, such as mitochondrial stress [54]. Pro- diators, and the occurrence of postoperative complica-
pofol may counteract oxidative stress by lowering the tions contributed to the clinical evaluation of patient
formation of F(2)-isoprostane, a marker of oxidative outcomes. C-reactive protein, creatine kinase-MB, and
stress, during transplantation and post-surgery [55]. Pro- neutrophil counts were measured pre- and postopera-
pofol also modulates systemic inflammation resulting tively, and interleukin-1, interleukin-6, and tumor ne-
from IR by decreasing the expression of nuclear factor- crosis factor-α levels were assessed to evaluate the degree
κB, a nuclear transcription factor that plays a key role in of inflammation and AKI [61]. In another study, patients
oxidative stress (Fig. 1) [56]. Propofol may also induce treated with propofol had better ICU survival than those
heme oxygenase-1 expression in order to mitigate renal treated with benzodiazepine. The outcomes for patients
IR injury [57]. Furthermore, propofol can also induce in the ICU that were exclusively treated with propofol or
protection against renal IR injury aggravated by hyper- midazolam were compared for the first 48 h. Patients
glycemia through its antioxidant abilities [58]. In com- treated with propofol had a lower risk of AKI, fluid-re-
parison to etomidate, propofol significantly attenuated lated complications, and less need for RRT compared
tubular damage after reperfusion in hyperglycemic rats. with midazolam [62].
It also preserved superoxide dismutase levels and attenu- It has been suggested that reperfusion-induced en-
ated post-reperfusion increases in levels of myeloperoxi- hancement of the connexin32 (Cx32) gap junction plays
dase, interleukin-1β, tumor necrosis factor-α, production an important role in mediating AKI post-liver transplan-

Anesthetic Effects on Renal Function Am J Nephrol 2017;46:380–389 385

DOI: 10.1159/000482014
tation. In one study, male rats underwent autologous liv- agents that produced the least renal oxidative stress in this
er transplantation (AOLT) with or without selective Cx32 model of common bile duct ligation-induced obstructive
inhibitor, 20-amino-ethoxydiphenyl, or propofol. AOLT jaundice [69]. Free radical injury in renal tissue during
significantly increased renal Cx32 protein expression, transplantation surgery was suggested to have significant
gap junction formation, and oxidative stress, and it im- importance in preventing related AKI.
paired renal function. Propofol inhibited Cx32 function Various clinical studies have helped elucidate the rela-
while attenuating post-AOLT AKI [63]. Another study tionship between anesthesia and clinical AKI. A recent
suggested that propofol exerts a renoprotective effect meta-analysis was conducted for remote ischemic pre-
against AKI after orthotopic liver autotransplantation conditioning (RIPC) trials in patients prior to undergo-
through the upregulation of the nuclear factor, erythroid ing cardiac surgery. Although researchers found that
2-related factor 2, a regulator of the cellular-defense re- there was a significant reduction in AKI when propofol
sponse protection against oxidative injury [64]. A recent was not used, no effects were observed in those who re-
study found that propofol protects against hepatic IR in- ceived both propofol and RIPC during surgery. This sug-
jury through the regulation of mitogen-activated protein gests that propofol may interact with the protective com-
kinase 6 expression by miR-133a-5p [65]. There is exten- ponents of RIPC, thereby improving clinical outcomes
sive supporting data regarding the protective effects of [70]. Furthermore, another recent study compared the
lipid emulsions against IR injury [6–13]. Considering the clinical outcomes of propofol and sevoflurane anesthesia
presence of lipids in propofol, this could provide new in- on postoperative AKI [71]. A multivariable analysis of
sights into organ-protective targets. 4,320 colorectal surgery patients’ medical records re-
Additionally, researchers have evaluated the effec- vealed that the incidence of AKI was significantly higher
tiveness of propofol in preservation solution in a por- in patients who received sevoflurane than in those who
cine autotransplantation model after 45 min of isch- received propofol, suggesting that anesthesia with propo-
emia. Their results demonstrated that propofol is a fol may be associated with improved clinical AKI out-
promising renoprotective agent that may attenuate hy- comes for patients [71]. Additionally, another study con-
pothermic and ischemic AKI in renal transplantation sisting of a randomized placebo-controlled trial investi-
through its antioxidant effects [66]. This mechanism of gated whether dexmedetomidine prevents AKI following
transplantation preservation is driven by propofol’s ac- valvular heart surgery [72]. AKI incidence, morbidity,
tion as a cytoprotective agent and membrane-targeted and ICU stay were all found to be significantly lower for
antioxidant. As such, propofol protects tubular cells patients who received dexmedetomidine than for those
from being affected by hypothermic injury in vitro, and who received the placebo, suggesting that perioperative
the addition of its cyclodextrin complex to the preserva- administration of dexmedetomidine may reduce the in-
tion fluid during machine perfusion delivers it to the cidence and severity of AKI, thus improving clinical out-
kidneys and prevents lipid peroxidation, while dimin- comes for patients undergoing cardiac surgery [72].
ishing the early reperfusion period’s renovascular resis-
tance after transplantation [66]. However, recent clini-
cal trials have suggested that volatile anesthetics, such as Regional Anesthesia
desflurane, used for anesthetic maintenance and preser-
vation during transplantation are associated with better It has been found that the addition of bupivacaine to a
outcomes than intravenous anesthetics [67]. In fact, depolarizing cardioplegia solution reduced cell damage
most currently available volatile anesthetics have been and improved cardiac function after prolonged storage
shown to efficiently preserve hepatic function and blood [73]. Bupivacaine’s ability to decreased cell damage sug-
flow [68]. gests that it may have some protective effects against renal
Furthermore, a recent study involving rats with ob- IR injury.
structive jaundice evaluated the protective effects of vari- In fact, several studies have found that epidural anal-
ous common intravenous anesthetics on renal tissues, gesia (EDA) reduces the incidence of acute renal failure.
and found that the incidence of postoperative AKI was In a study that investigated the effect of EDA on renal
higher in rats with obstructive jaundice than in those blood flow in 13 healthy volunteers, researchers adminis-
without it, and that obstructive jaundice causes renal tis- tered lidocaine 2% without epinephrine to establish a bi-
sue to become sensitive to anesthetic damage [69]. It was lateral T6 epidural sensory block. They found that EDA
found that propofol and ketamine were the 2 anesthetic did not significantly alter renal blood flow [74]. In fact,

386 Am J Nephrol 2017;46:380–389 Motayagheni/Phan/Eshraghi/Nozari/

DOI: 10.1159/000482014 Atala
EDA using lidocaine or bupivacaine is the preferred an- Conclusion
esthesia method in renal transplantations because it dis-
plays lower toxicity for the recipient and renal allograft Certain anesthetics seem to exhibit protective effects
[75]. in patients through anti- inflammatory, anti-necrotic,
Furthermore, a review of trials with randomization of and anti-apoptotic mechanisms. Additionally, intrave-
intraoperative neuraxial blockade showed that EDA re- nous anesthetics, such as propofol, are promising candi-
duces postoperative mortality and other complications, dates for preventing or treating AKI, as well as IR injury.
such as renal failure [76]. This finding is further rein- The effects of anesthetic drugs on renal function are par-
forced by a meta-analysis, which found that EDA, in ad- ticularly important in the context of kidney transplanta-
dition to general anesthesia, reduced the incidence of tion and preservation strategies. Although anesthetics
perioperative acute renal failure in cardiac surgery [77]. may have important clinical implications, our under-
Lidocaine may provide protection against IR injury by standing of the underlying mechanism of their renal pro-
preventing miRNA dysregulation. A recent study found tection is not fully understood. Further research is neces-
that lung IR injury caused miRNA dysregulation, while sary to elucidate the molecular mechanisms of anesthet-
lidocaine reduced these changes [78]. Further studies ics, specifically those that contain lipids in their structure,
should be conducted to examine how lidocaine regulates to enable repurposing them for novel applications, such
miRNA expression. as transplant and organ-protective targets.
In contrast, a recent study found that EDA may be a
risk factor for postoperative AKI after major hepatectomy
[79]. While attempting to elucidate the relationship be- Financial Disclosures
tween anesthesia and clinical AKI, it was found that for
major hepatectomies, AKI incidence was significantly The authors have nothing to disclose.
higher among patients who received EDA as compared to
those who did not, suggesting that EDA may contribute
to negative postoperative clinical AKI outcomes for pa- Disclosure Statement
tients [79]. However, since no significant difference in The authors have no conflicts of interest to declare.
AKI incidence was revealed in patients undergoing minor
hepatectomies, contradictory data suggest that EDA may
have a beneficial impact during some types of surgery, but
Data Source
not others. Further studies are required to elucidate the
clinical outcomes of EDA on renal function in different Research in both human and animals has contributed the data
types of surgery. needed for this study.

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