Kidney Transplantation Summary A kidney transplant is an operation that places a healthy kidney in your body. The transplanted kidney takes over the work of the two kidneys that failed, so you no longer need dialysis. During a transplant, the surgeon places the new kidney in your lower abdomen and connects the artery and vein of the new kidney to your artery and vein. Often, the new kidney will start making urine as soon as your blood starts flowing through it. But sometimes it takes a few weeks to start working. Many transplanted kidneys come from donors who have died. Some come from a living family member. The wait for a new kidney can be long. If you have a transplant, you must take drugs for the rest of your life, to keep your body from rejecting the new kidney. NIH: National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases Clinical Trials ClinicalTrials.gov: Kidney Transplantation National Institutes of Health Living With Diet and Transplantation National Kidney Foundation From Illness to Wellness: Life After Transplantation National Kidney Foundation Find an Expert Directory of Kidney and Urologic Diseases Organizations National Kidney and Urologic Diseases Information Clearinghouse National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases National Kidney Foundation National Kidney Foundation Related Issues Flu Season and Your Kidneys National Kidney Foundation Metabolic Syndrome after Kidney Transplantation – Are You at Risk? National Kidney Foundation New Onset Diabetes: A Guide for Kidney Transplant Recipients National Kidney Foundation Side Effects of Immunosuppressant Medications as They Affect Physical Fitness: A Physical Therapist’s Point of View National Kidney Foundation Solitary Kidney National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases Travel Tips: A Guide for Kidney Patients National Kidney Foundation What Vaccinations Do You Need? National Kidney Foundation Treatments and Therapies Immunosuppressants National Kidney Foundation Statistics and Research Kidney Facts United Network for Organ Sharing Organ Facts: Kidney / Pancreas United Network for Organ Sharing Protein-Based Urine Test Predicts Kidney Transplant Outcomes National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases Transplant Program Reports Scientific Registry of Transplant Recipients Start Here Kidney Transplant Mayo Foundation for Medical Education and Research Kidney Transplant National Kidney Foundation Treatment Methods for Kidney Failure: Transplantation National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases Array Kidney transplant Kidney transplant – slideshow Specifics Kidney-Pancreas Transplant National Kidney Foundation Questions and Answers for Transplant Candidates about Kidney Allocation Policy United Network for Organ Sharing Transplant Options When You Don’t Have a ‘Good Match’ International Transplant Nurses Society Reference Desk Kidneys and How They Work National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases Kidneys and Urinary Tract (For Parents) Nemours Foundation Videos and Tutorials Living Donor Kidney Transplant OR-Live Women Pregnancy and Kidney Disease National Kidney Foundation Journal Articles Kidney Transplantation Children Questions Children Ask: Helping Children Adjust When a Parent Has Kidney Failure National Kidney Foundation Treatment Methods for Kidney Failure in Children National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases What Vaccinations Does My Child Need? National Kidney Foundation When Your Child Needs a Kidney Transplant Nemours Foundation Latest News Paying for Kidneys Might Boost Donor Rate, Study Says HealthDay Many Kidney Transplant Patients Land in ER Within 2 Years: Study HealthDay