Ping Wan

Right lobe split liver transplantation versus whole liver transplantation in adult recipients: A systematic review and meta‐analysis

Split liver transplantation (SLT) has proven to be an effective technique to reduce the mortality of children on the waiting list, but whether creating 2 split grafts from 1 standard‐criteria whole liver would compromise outcomes of adult recipients remains uncertain. We conducted this meta‐analysis to compare outcomes of right lobe SLT and whole liver transplantation (WLT) in adult patients. PubMed, Embase, and the Cochrane Library were searched for relevant articles published before December 2014. Outcomes assessed were patient survival (PS), graft survival (GS), and major surgical complications after transplantation. Pooled odds ratios (ORs) with 95% confidence intervals (CIs) were calculated to synthesize the results. Seventeen studies with a total of 48,457 patients met the full inclusion criteria. PS and GS rates were all found to be equivalent between SLT and WLT recipients. However, SLT was associated with higher rates of overall biliary complications (OR = 1.66; 95% CI = 1.29‐2.15; P < 0.001), bile leaks (OR = 4.30; 95% CI = 2.97‐6.23; P < 0.001), overall vascular complications (OR = 1.81; 95% CI = 1.29‐2.53; P < 0.001), hepatic artery thromboses (OR = 1.71; 95% CI = 1.17‐2.50; P = 0.005), and outflow tract obstructions (OR = 4.17; 95% CI = 1.75‐9.94; P = 0.001). No significant difference was observed in incidences of biliary stricture, portal vein complications, postoperative bleeding requiring surgical treatments, primary nonfunction, and retransplantations. In subgroup analyses, biliary and vascular complications only increased after ex vivo SLT rather than in situ SLT, and SLT recipients had more retransplantations if they matched with WLT recipients in terms of urgent status. In conclusion, adult right lobe SLT was associated with increased biliary and vascular complications compared with WLT, but it did not show significant inferiority in PSs and GSs. Liver Transpl 21:928‐943, 2015.

Liver transplantation for hepatocellular carcinoma beyond the Milan criteria: A review.

Liver transplantation (LT) has been accepted as an effective therapy for hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). The Milan criteria (MC) are widely used across the world to select LT candidates in HCC patients. However, the MC may be too strict because a substantial subset of patients who have HCC exceed the MC and who would benefit from LT may be unnecessarily excluded from the waiting list. In recent years, many extended criteria beyond the MC were raised, which were proved to be able to yield similar outcomes compared with those patients meeting the MC. Because the simple use of tumor size and number was insufficient to indicate HCC biological features and to predict the risk of tumor recurrence, some biological markers such as Alpha-fetoprotein, Des-Gamma-carboxy prothrombin and the neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio were useful in selecting LT candidates in HCC patients beyond the MC. For patients with advanced HCC, downstaging therapy is an effective way to reduce the tumor stage to fulfill the MC by using liver-directed therapy such as transarterial chemoembolization, radiofrequency ablation and percutaneous ethanol injection. This article reviews the recent advances in LT for HCC beyond the MC.

Living-donor or deceased-donor liver transplantation for hepatic carcinoma: A case-matched comparison

AIM To compare the surgical outcomes between living-donor and deceased-donor liver transplantation in patients with hepatic carcinoma. METHODS From January 2007 to December 2010, 257 patients with pathologically confirmed hepatic carcinoma met the eligibility criteria of the study. Forty patients who underwent living-donor liver transplantation (LDLT) constituted the LDLT group, and deceased-donor liver transplantation (DDLT) was performed in 217 patients. Patients in the LDLT group were randomly matched (1:2) to patients who underwent DDLT using a multivariate case-matched method, so 40 patients in the LDLT group and 80 patients in the DDLT group were enrolled into the study. We compared the two groups in terms of clinicopathological characteristics, postoperative complications, long-term cumulative survival and relapse-free survival outcomes. The modified Clavien-Dindo classification system of surgical complications was used to evaluate the severity of perioperative complications. Furthermore, we determined the difference in the overall biliary complication rates in the perioperative and follow-up periods between the LDLT and DDLT groups. RESULTS The clinicopathological characteristics of the enrolled patients were comparable between the two groups. The duration of operation was significantly longer (553 min vs 445 min, P < 0.001) in the LDLT group than in the DDLT group. Estimated blood loss (1188 mL vs 1035 mL, P = 0.055) and the proportion of patients with intraoperative transfusion (60.0% vs 43.8%, P = 0.093) were slightly but not significantly greater in the LDLT group. In contrast to DDLT, LDLT was associated with a lower rate of perioperative grade II complications (45.0% vs 65.0%, P = 0.036) but a higher risk of overall biliary complications (27.5% vs 7.5%, P = 0.003). Nonetheless, 21 patients (52.5%) in the LDLT group and 46 patients (57.5%) in the DDLT group experienced perioperative complications, and overall perioperative complication rates were similar between the two groups (P = 0.603). No significant difference was observed in 5-year overall survival (74.1% vs 66.6%, P = 0.372) or relapse-free survival (72.9% vs 70.9%, P = 0.749) between the LDLT and DDLT groups. CONCLUSION Although biliary complications were more common in the LDLT group, this group did not show any inferiority in long-term overall survival or relapse-free survival compared with DDLT.

Influence of graft size matching on outcomes of infantile living donor liver transplantation

We aimed to assess the impact of size mismatching between grafts and recipients on outcomes of infants or small children after LDLT. Between October 2006 and December 2014, 129 LDLT recipients weighing no more than 8 kg were retrospectively analyzed. The entire cohort was categorized into three groups by GRWR: GRWR<3.0% (group A, n = 38), 3.0%≤GRWR<4.0% (group B, n = 61), and GRWR≥4.0% (group C, n = 30). Baseline characteristics were similar among groups A, B, and C. Compared with groups A and B, post‐transplant alanine aminotransferase and aspartate aminotransferase within seven days were significantly higher in group C; however, differences between total bilirubin and albumin after transplantation were not prominent. Moreover, incidences of surgical complications, perioperative deaths, infections, and acute rejections were all comparable among the three groups. Five‐yr patient survival rates for groups A, B, and C were 89.5%, 88.9%, and 81.6%, respectively (p = 0.872), and the graft survival rates were 89.5%, 86.6%, and 81.6%, respectively (p = 0.846). In conclusion, GRWR between 1.9% and 5.8% would not cause noticeable adverse events for infantile LDLT recipients ≤8 kg. However, there is still a role for considering reduction in the graft mass as an applicable strategy in selected cases.

Serum levels of preoperative α-fetoprotein and Ca19-9 predict survival of hepatic carcinoma patients after liver transplantation

Objective The aim of this study was to assess serum levels of presurgical &agr;-fetoprotein (AFP) and carbohydrate antigen 19-9 (CA19-9) as prognostic markers in patients with hepatic carcinoma after liver transplantation (LT). Methods A total of 226 patients were recruited for the analysis of serum AFP and CA19-9 levels, on the basis of which the tumor marker type (TMT) was defined and evaluated for prognostic prediction. Overall survival (OS) and relapse-free survival (RFS) were analyzed using Kaplan–Meier curves, and univariate and multivariate Cox models. Results One-year and 5-year OS were 79.0 and 58.0%, respectively, whereas RFS were 70.3 and 62.2%, respectively, in this cohort of patients. There were six variables predicting both OS and RFS, including TMT, tumor size, number of tumor lesions, extrahepatic or vascular invasion, and histopathological grade. Among these, TMT, tumor size, and extrahepatic invasion were all independent predictors of OS and RFS among these patients. Further, on the basis of TMT, novel LT selection criteria for patients with hepatic carcinoma, which supplemented the Milan criteria, were adopted, because the patients within the Milan criteria (n=107) and those exceeding Milan but fulfilling the proposed criteria (n=30) had similar 5-year OS (77.8 vs. 79.3%, P=0.862) and RFS (85.5 vs. 75.1%, P=0.210) rates. Conclusion The data from this study showed that serum levels of preoperative AFP and CA19-9 were able to predict survival of patients with hepatic carcinoma after LT. This study included novel criteria, adding serum AFP and CA19-9 levels to the selection criteria for LT eligibility of patients, in addition to the Milan criteria.

Bile duct kinking after adult living donor liver transplantation: case reports and literature review

Regeneration of the partial allograft and the growth of children may cause kinking of the biliary tract after pediatric living donor liver transplantation (LDLT), but bile duct kinking after adult LDLT is rarely reported. We herein presented two patients who suffered from anastomotic strictures caused by severe bile duct kinking after LDLT. The first patient was a 57‐year‐old woman with hepatitis B virus (HBV)‐related liver cirrhosis, who developed biliary stricture 5 months after receiving right‐lobe LDLT. Subsequently, endoscopic and percutaneous treatments were attempted, but both failed to solve the problem. The second was a 44‐year‐old woman also having HBV‐related liver cirrhosis. Biliary stricture occurred 14 months after LDLT. Likewise, the guide wire failed to pass through the stricture when endoscopic interventions were conducted. Afterwards, both of the two cases underwent reexploration, showing that compensatory hypertrophy of the allografts resulted in kinking and sharp angulation of the bile ducts, and the anastomotic sites were found to be severely stenotic. Finally, re‐anastomosis by Roux‐en‐Y procedure was successfully performed, and long‐term stenosis‐free survival was achieved in both of them. Our experience suggests that bile duct kinking after LDLT may play a role in the high incidence of anastomotic strictures in adult LDLT recipients, which may also result in the treatment failure of the non‐surgical techniques for anastomotic strictures. Re‐anastomosis in the form of Roux‐en‐Y hepaticojejunostomy is an effective surgical option for the treatment of such a condition.

Nomogram predicting pulmonary metastasis of hepatocellular carcinoma after liver transplantation

A novel prognostic nomogram predicting post-transplant pulmonary metastasis was established with a primary cohort of 308 HCC patients who received liver transplantation between 2007 and 2011 at Ren Ji Hospital. The C-indexes for predicting pulmonary metastasis was 0.85. The calibration curves fitted well between the predicted and actual outcomes. The decision curve analysis indicated that our nomogram was the optimal decision-making strategy for PM prediction compared to Milan, University of California San Franscisco, and up-to-seven criteria. These results were further validated by data from 103 patients who underwent liver transplantation between 2011 and 2012 at the same institution. In conclusion, our nomogram could be used as an effective tool to predict PM after liver transplantation.

Improved portal vein venoplasty with an autogenous patch in pediatric living donor liver transplantation

A stenotic or hypoplastic portal vein (PV) represents a challenge for PV reconstruction in pediatric living donor liver transplantation (LDLT). Several PV venoplastic techniques have been developed. However, we still seek improved venoplastic techniques with better efficacy and compatibility. From June 2016 to July 2017, 271 LDLT procedures were performed at the Department of Liver Surgery, Renji Hospital. A total of 16 consecutive children with stenotic and sclerotic PVs underwent a novel technique—the autogenous PV patch plastic technique. Vessel patches were procured from the left branch (LB), or the bifurcation of the right branch and LB of the PV in the native liver. Then, the PVs were enlarged by suturing the patches along the longitudinal axis from the confluence of the PV and coronary vein (CV). In this series, 15/16 achieved good intraoperational PV flow, and 1 showed low PV flow but was treated with stent placement. Within a median follow‐up of 11 months (1‐18 months), 15 patients were alive and had normal graft function, whereas 1 child died from lung infection 1 month after transplantation. No PV complications were detected. In conclusion, the autogenous patch venoplasty technique using the PV‐CV confluence is simple and safe. This novel venoplastic reconstruction technique could serve as a surgical option to achieve satisfactory outcomes, especially those with stenotic PV (<4.5 mm) and dilated CV (>3.0 mm). Liver Transplantation 2018 AASLD.

Risk factors and survival outcomes of biliary complications after adult-to-adult living donor liver transplantation

The objective of this study was to evaluate the risk factors and survival outcomes of biliary complications (BCs) after living donor liver transplantation (LDLT) based on our single-center experience. From 2007 to 2010, 112 adult patients were assessed. Forty-nine patients (43.8%) experienced at least one episode of BCs, including biliary stricture and bile leak, occurring in 37.5% and 16.1% of the patients, respectively. Multivariate analysis indicated that hepatic artery thrombosis (relative risk (RR), 5.692; 95% CI, 2.132 to 15.201; p < 0.001), a hepatic duct diameter of less than 3 mm (RR, 2.523; 95% CI, 1.295 to 4.914; p = 0.005), ductoplasty (RR, 2.175; 95% CI, 1.134 to 4.174; p = 0.018), and cytomegalovirus infection (RR, 4.452; 95% CI, 1.868 to 10.613; p = 0.001) were independent risk factors for the development of BCs. However, these factors and BCs showed no prominent impact on the overall survival (OS) and graft survival (GS). In addition, the patients who developed vascular complications demonstrated poor outcomes in terms of OS (five-year, 56.3% vs. 78.1%; p = 0.017), GS (five-year, 56.3% vs. 77.1%; p = 0.023), and BC-free survival (five-year, 25.0% vs. 63.5%; p = 0.007) compared with patients without vascular complications. In conclusion, BCs remain a common problem after LDLT, especially for patients using duct-to-duct anastomosis. Hepatic artery thrombosis, a short duct diameter, ductoplasty, and cytomegalovirus infection lead to an increased incidence of BCs. The occurrence of BCs manifested no significant influence on the long-term survival outcomes. However, our findings await verification through large-scale randomized studies regarding the risk factors for the development of BCs and their impact on the prognosis.

Living-related pediatric liver transplantation using the right posterior sector graft

The patient was an 8-year-old girl weighing 28 kg. She was diagnosed with cholestasis disease and liver cirrhosis and was admitted to Department of Liver Surgery of Ren Ji Hospital for living donor liver transplantation (LDLT).