Regular Exercise After Kidney Transplant Linked to Lower Graft Failure and Death Risks

For people living with a transplanted kidney, regular exercise may help protect both the graft and the patient, according to a South Korean study.

Researchers from Severance Hospital and the Armed Forces Capital Hospital analyzed National Health Insurance data for 12,175 kidney transplant recipients. They divided the patients into groups based on whether they exercised regularly and followed them for an average of more than seven years.

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This study provides evidence that regular exercise can improve both transplant kidney survival and patient survival.

Recipients who exercised regularly had a 28% lower risk of losing transplant kidney function and a 15% lower risk of death compared with those who did not exercise. The results remained consistent after researchers adjusted for age, sex, diabetes, high blood pressure, other health conditions and kidney function.

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If exercise counseling and programs tailored to each patient’s condition are actively used in clinical care, they are expected to help improve long-term treatment outcomes.

The study found that maintaining a sufficient amount of exercise mattered more than exercising at high intensity. Moderate activity, such as brisk walking for about 150 minutes a week, showed the most consistent benefits. The researchers said patients may benefit without undertaking strenuous workouts.

Professor Lee Joo-han said the findings provide evidence that regular exercise can improve both transplant kidney survival and patient survival. He said exercise advice and tailored programs could be incorporated into medical care, while noting that the study relied on self-reported exercise surveys. Further research will examine the effects of different exercise intensities and types more objectively. The findings appeared in the International Journal of Surgery.

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Because this study analyzed exercise levels based on patients’ self-reported surveys, we will continue follow-up research to verify more objectively the effects according to exercise intensity and type.