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Elliott returns for corrective surgery, in good condition

Associated Press Arizona Summer Wildcat San Antonio Spurs' Sean Elliott smiles and waves as he arrives for a news conference via wheelchair in San Antonio on Thursday. Elliott made his public first appearance three days after receiving a kidney from his brother Noel.

A complication with his new kidney forced former UA basketball star Sean Elliott back into surgery Saturday in San Antonio, but hospital officials said yesterday he's in good condition.

Last Monday, Elliott, 31, received a kidney from his brother Noel at the San Antonio Methodist Specialty and Transplant Hospital.

Doctors noticed a change in Elliott's kidney functions on Saturday and found some urine leakage from the site where the new kidney is connected to the bladder.

Dr. Francis Wright, Elliott's surgeon, reopened the original transplant incision and performed corrective surgery.

Wright described the complication as a "plumbing problem" that occurs in about two or three percent of transplant operations.

The surgery involved removing a short segment of the tip of the ureter and reconnecting the kidney to the urinary system.

Palmira Arellano, a hospital spokeswoman, said the complication is "not a big worry and not related to rejection."

Elliott was slated to return home today but will remain in the hospital until the end of the week. Noel, 32, went home Friday in good condition.

"Clearly, Sean is in excellent physical condition, which will help recovery," Wright said. "The kidney is working just fine."

Elliott was feeling well enough Thursday to hold a press conference at the hospital.

"I fell like I am doing great," he said at the conference. "A little tired, but other than that, I'm just excited to see what lays ahead of me."

Elliott, a former Cholla High School star, helped lead the 1988 Wildcats to the NCAA Final Four for the first time ever.

This past season, Elliott and former Wildcat teammate Steve Kerr were a part of the NBA champion San Antonio Spurs.

Noel, a sales associate for WalMart in Tucson, was announced as a good match for a transplant the week before the surgery.

In a four-hour donor operation, a kidney was removed from Noel, and then in a three-and-a-half-hour operation, transplanted to Sean.

"I received a kidney from my brother Noel, a gift of love and life," Elliott said in a post-surgery statement.

For the past seven years, Elliott has had focal glomerulosclerosis, a condition that prevents the kidneys from properly filtering waste from the blood and can lead to failure of both kidneys. While both of Elliott's kidneys still have a minimal level of functioning, had he not received the transplant, he would have required dialysis.

Wright said Elliott greatly appreciates the outpouring of support he has seen from fans. He has already received "hundreds and hundreds" of get-well cards and e-mails.

Anxious fans in both San Antonio and Tucson wait for a full recovery and word of whether or not Elliott will be able to return to the NBA.

"Clearly nobody else has played athletics at that level with a kidney transplant," Wright said. "It depends on how his recovery goes. I don't see any reason he couldn't contemplate a return to the Spurs."

Wright said Elliott will need to severely limit activity for six to eight weeks to allow the incision to heal, and then another several months of recovery before he could begin any strenuous activity.

"Sean and the Spurs certainly showed who the best in the NBA was last year," Wright said. "He and Noel showed who were the best in transplants this year. The whole family has reached out in a remarkable way."