Fasting During the First Year of Transplantation: Is it Safe?

During the month of Ramadan 1417H we studied 14 patients all transplanted with live related kidneys. All the patients were transplanted between one and seven months before the month of Ramadan. All the patients were on azathioprine and prednisolone and the mean plasma creatinine level was 95 +/- 15 micromol/L. They all completed fasting the month of Ramadan successfully. Medical evaluation showed that there was no clinical adverse effect. There was no significant change in serum values of creatinine, calcium, protein, sodium, potassium, chloride, HC03, or liver function tests. There was, however, a significant elevation of total plasma proteins, urea, uric acid, hemoglobin, triglycerides, cholesterol, urinary sodium and potassium, concentration (p=< 0.05). Our study shows that fasting in Ramadan during the first year of transplantation is possible, nevertheless further studies with large number of patients are necessary to confirm this specially in patients receiving cyclosporine.