Researchers reviewed 44 previous studies to understand how often severe heart blockages are found in people being screened before a kidney transplant. They specifically looked for blockages that meet strict American Heart Association guidelines for needing surgery, like a major blockage in the main artery or multiple blockages in a weakened heart. The studies involved patients in various pre-transplant screening programs.
The main finding was that, on average, only about 2% of screened patients had these severe blockages that are clear candidates for surgery. About 10% had multiple blockages, and 35% of patients were sent for more invasive heart imaging. However, the rate of finding severe blockages varied a lot between different studies, ranging from 0% to 17%, which makes the average estimate less certain.
No safety information or side effects from the screening were reported in this review. The biggest reason for caution is that this research only tells us how often these problems are found. It does not tell us if having surgery to fix these blockages before a kidney transplant actually leads to better survival or fewer complications for these patients. Readers should understand that this is a review of existing screening data, not a study of treatment benefits. The wide variation in results also means the true rate might be different in any specific hospital or patient group.