The microcirculation is altered in acute kidney injury and chronic kidney disease. The microcirculation is poor in end-stage renal disease patients receiving hemodialysis. Kidney transplant can improve the life quality of these patients. However, surgical stress and inflammatory response may cause microcirculatory dysfunction and intestinal injury. Moreover, the transplanted kidney would suffer from the ischemia and reperfusion injury, and it may result in acute kidney injury. In ischemia and reperfusion injury animal model, dexmedetomidine has been proven to attenuate kidney and intestinal injury. In our previous study of surgical stress and pain stimulation rat model, we found that dexmedetomidine attenuate the intestinal microcirculatory dysfunction. In patients receiving coronary artery bypass graft surgery, dexmedetomidine increases urine output and decreases postoperative serum level of neutrophil gelatinase-associated lipocalin.

This study aims to investigate whether perioperative dexmedetomidine infusion may attenuate microcirculatory dysfunction, kidney injury, and intestinal injury for patients undergoing kidney transplant.