CCTN Cheat Sheet 2026

The 30 highest-yield CCTN facts, distilled from real exam questions. Print it, save it as a PDF, or study it here — free, no sign-up.

1. Which preservation solution is most commonly used for kidney preservation during cold storage? → University of Wisconsin (UW) solution
2. Which lifestyle modification is most important to counsel a transplant recipient about for long-term cardiovascular health? → Smoking cessation, regular exercise, and blood pressure management
3. There are several signs of decreased cardiac output in heart recipients. → Jugular venousdistention
4. Renal artery stenosis after kidney transplantation typically presents with which clinical findings? → Hypertension that is difficult to control and rising creatinine
5. What is the most important nursing assessment parameter in the first 24 hours after kidney transplantation? → Hourly urine output measurement
6. Which type of rejection occurs within minutes to hours after transplantation and is caused by preformed antibodies? → Hyperacute rejection
7. A pancreas transplant recipient's fasting blood glucose rises from 90 to 210 mg/dL on post-operative day 14. What should the nurse suspect FIRST? → Graft rejection or thrombosis
8. A patient taking tacrolimus is prescribed rifampin for tuberculosis. What effect should the transplant nurse anticipate? → Tacrolimus levels will decrease significantly due to CYP3A4 induction
9. Which finding in a liver transplant recipient at post-operative day 3 would be MOST concerning for primary non-function (PNF)? → AST >5,000 IU/L with coagulopathy and rising creatinine
10. Which laboratory trend is MOST consistent with calcineurin inhibitor (CNI) nephrotoxicity in a stable kidney transplant recipient? → Gradual creatinine rise with supratherapeutic CNI trough levels and no proteinuria
11. What is the significance of Panel Reactive Antibody (PRA) percentage in transplant candidates? → It indicates the percentage of donor pool against which the patient has antibodies
12. Which psychological condition is most commonly seen in transplant recipients awaiting an organ on the waiting list? → Depression and anxiety
13. When counseling a female kidney transplant recipient of childbearing age about pregnancy, the transplant nurse should emphasize that: → Mycophenolate mofetil must be discontinued before conception due to teratogenicity
14. Which blood group compatibility rule is universally applied in solid organ transplantation? → ABO blood group compatibility between donor and recipient is required
15. Which transplant patient situation requires mandatory referral to social work? → Patient expresses inability to afford medications or housing instability
16. Which apnea test finding confirms brain death during donor evaluation? → No spontaneous respirations with PaCO2 rising to ≥60 mmHg or 20 mmHg above baseline
17. Which complication is indicated by a sudden cessation of urine output, graft pain, and hematuria in an early post-kidney-transplant patient? → Renal vein thrombosis
18. Chest tube drainage shouldn't go over a certain amount while assessing postoperative mediastinal hemorrhage. → 200 mL in 2 to 6 hours
19. A liver transplant recipient develops new-onset hypertension and nephrotoxicity. Which immunosuppressant is most likely responsible? → Tacrolimus
20. A kidney transplant recipient on tacrolimus develops a serum creatinine rise from 1.2 to 2.8 mg/dL on post-op day 5. The most appropriate next step is: → Obtain a renal biopsy to differentiate rejection from tacrolimus nephrotoxicity
21. Which of the following is the most important factor in determining a patient's risk for rejection in the first year after transplant? → Number of HLA mismatches
22. What is the primary purpose of performing a liver biopsy on a donor liver before transplantation? → To assess the degree of hepatic steatosis, which affects graft function
23. The insulin type that is most frequently used to manage hyperglycemia following heart transplantation is → Short-acting regular insulin, such as Novolin R.
24. C4d deposition on peritubular capillaries is a hallmark finding in which type of renal transplant rejection? → Antibody-mediated rejection
25. How long after transplantation should female recipients wait before attempting pregnancy? → At least 1–2 years, when graft function is stable and immunosuppression is minimized
26. Acute cellular rejection is primarily mediated by which immune cells? → T lymphocytes
27. What is the primary role of HLA matching in solid organ transplantation? → To reduce the risk of immunologic rejection
28. Under the Organ Procurement and Transplantation Network (OPTN) rules, who is legally responsible for a transplant program's compliance with OPTN policies? → The hospital's transplant program and its designated transplant physicians/surgeons
29. Which of the following is a classic sign of acute rejection in a kidney transplant recipient? → Oliguria, rising creatinine, and graft tenderness
30. What is the primary purpose of the UNOS (United Network for Organ Sharing)? → Managing the national organ transplant system and waitlist