R. Selby

The spectrum of portal vein thrombosis in liver transplantation

Thrombosis of the portal vein with or without patency of its tributaries used to be a contraindication to orthotopic liver transplantation (OLTX) until quite recently. Rapid progress in the surgical technique of OLTX in the last few years has demonstrated that most patients with portal vein thrombosis can be safely and successfully transplanted. Presented here is a series of 34 patients with portal vein thrombosis transplanted at the University of Pittsburgh since 1984. The various techniques used to treat various forms of thrombosis are described. The survival rate for this series was 67.6% (23 of 34 patients). Survival was best for patients who underwent phlebothrombectomy or placement of a jump graft from the superior mesenteric vein. The survival rate also correlated with the amount of blood required for transfusion during surgery. Overall it is concluded that a vast majority of the patients with thrombosis of the portal system can be technically transplanted and that their survival rate is comparable to that of patients with patent portal vein.

Hepatic Artery Angioplasty after Liver Transplantation: Experience in 21 Allografts

PURPOSE To assess whether percutaneous transluminal angioplasty (PTA) can help prolong allograft survival and improve allograft function in patients with hepatic artery stenosis after liver transplantation. PATIENTS AND METHODS Hepatic artery PTA was attempted in 19 patients with 21 allografts over 12 years. The postangioplasty clinical course was retrospectively analyzed. Liver enzyme levels were measured before and after PTA to determine if changes in liver function occurred after successful PTA. RESULTS Technical success was achieved in 17 allografts (81%). Retransplantation was required for four of 17 allografts (24%) in which PTA was successful and four of four allografts in which PTA was unsuccessful; this difference was significant (P = .03). Two major procedure-related complications occurred: an arterial leak that required surgical repair and an extensive dissection that necessitated retransplantation 14 months after PTA. Hepatic failure necessitated repeat transplantation in seven cases from 2 weeks to 27 months (mean, 8.4 months) after PTA. Six patients died during follow-up, three of whom had undergone repeat transplantation. Markedly elevated liver enzyme levels at presentation were associated with an increased risk of retransplantation or death regardless of the outcome of PTA. CONCLUSION PTA of hepatic artery stenosis after liver transplantation is relatively safe and may help decrease allograft loss due to thrombosis. Marked allograft dysfunction at presentation is a poor prognostic sign; thus, timely intervention is important.

Single-center experience with primary orthotopic liver transplantation with FK 506 immunosuppression.

OBJECTIVE The efficacy for primary orthotopic liver transplantation of a new immunosuppressive agent, FK 506 (tacrolimus, Prograf, Fujisawa USA, Deerfield, IL), was determined. SUMMARY BACKGROUND DATA After 3 years of preclinical research, a clinical trial of FK 506 for orthotopic liver transplantation was begun in February 1989, first as a rescue therapy for patients with intractable rejection with conventional immunosuppression, then as a primary drug. METHODS Between August 1989 and December 1993, 1391 recipients (1188 adult and 203 pediatric) of primary liver allografts were treated with FK 506 from the outset. Results from these patients were analyzed and compared with those of 1212 historical control patients (971 adult and 241 pediatric) given cyclosporine-based immunosuppression. RESULTS Actuarial survival at 4 years was 86.2% with FK 506 versus 65.5% with cyclosporine in the pediatric patients (p < 0.0000) and 71.4% versus 65.5% in the adults (p < 0.0005). The need for retransplantation was reduced significantly for FK 506 patients. Four-year graft survival was 77.0% with FK 506 versus 48.4% with cyclosporine in the pediatric patients (p < 0.0000), and 61.9% with FK 506 versus 51.4% with cyclosporine in the adult recipients (p < 0.0000). Regression analysis revealed that reduction in mortality or graft loss from uncontrollable rejection, sepsis, technical failure, and recurrent original liver disease were responsible for the improved results with FK 506 therapy. CONCLUSIONS FK 506 is a potent and superior immunosuppressive agent for orthotopic liver transplantation.

Liver transplantation for type I and type IV glycogen storage disease

Progressive liver failure or hepatic complications of the primary disease led to orthotopic liver transplantation in eight children with glycogen storage disease over a 9-year period. One patient had glycogen storage disease (GSD) type I (von Gierke disease) and seven patients had type IV GSD (Andersen disease). As previously reported [19], a 16.5-year-old-girl with GSD type I was successfully treated in 1982 by orthotopic liver transplantation under cyclosporine and steroid immunosuppression. The metabolic consequences of the disease have been eliminated, the renal function and size have remained normal, and the patient has lived a normal young adult life. A late portal venous thrombosis was treated successfully with a distal splenorenal shunt. Orthotopic liver transplantation was performed in seven children with type N GSD who had progressive hepatic failure. Two patients died early from technical complications. The other five have no evidence of recurrent hepatic amylopectinosis after 1.1–5.8 postoperative years. They have had good physical and intellectual maturation. Amylopectin was found in many extrahepatic tissues prior to surgery, but cardiopathy and skeletal myopathy have not developed after transplantation. Post-operative heart biopsies from patients showed either minimal amylopectin deposits as long as 4.5 years following transplantation or a dramatic reduction in sequential biopsies from one patient who initially had dense myocardial deposits. Serious hepatic derangement is seen most commonly in types I and IV GSD. Liver transplantation cures the hepatic manifestations of both types. The extrahepatic deposition of abnormal glycogen appears not to be problematic in type I disease, and while potentially more threatening in type IV disease, may actually exhibit signs of regression after hepatic allografting.

Liver transplantation in cystic fibrosis.

Liver disease is the second most common cause of death in patients with cystic fibrosis (CF). Improvement in surgical techniques, medical management, and imaging modalities has broadened the range of options for treatment of these patients. Medical management with ursodeoxycholic acid and nutritional support may help decelerate the progression of liver disease. A timely evaluation of CF patients with liver involvement for transplantation is important. Such evaluation should not be delayed until signs of hepatic decompensation occur. Combined lung-liver transplant can be considered for patients with advanced pulmonary disease. Pretransplant management of portal hypertension with a portosystemic shunt procedure is an option for patients with well-preserved synthetic liver function. Improvement in lung function after liver transplantation and no significant risk of pulmonary infection with immunosuppressive therapy have been reported. Review of individual center experiences have shown satisfactory survival and improved quality of life for CF patients undergoing liver transplant.

The relationship of systemic hemodynamics and oxygen consumption to early allograft failure after liver transplantation

The early postoperative hemodynamic data of 88 patients who underwent primary liver transplantation between July 1989 and October 1990 at the University Health Center of Pittsburgh were analyzed to establish the relationship of systemic hemodynamics and oxygen consumption to perioperative allograft function. The 15 patients whose allografts failed within the 1 st month following transplantation were designated as group 1, while 73 patients who retained adequate graft function constituted group 2. Although the cardiac index and oxygen delivery did not differ significantly between the groups, group 1 consistently demonstrated a lower mean arterial pressure, oxygen consumption, arteriovenous oxygen content difference, and arterial ketone body ratio. The etiology of reduced oxygen consumption in group 1 patients is speculative, but the data support the notion that oxygen consumption is a useful, predictive indicator for liver allograft function after transplantation.

Alternative procedure for failed reconstruction of a right replaced hepatic artery in liver transplantation

A right replaced hepatic artery (RRHA) arising from the superior mesenteric artery (SMA) is the most frequent variation of the hepatic arterial supply requiring backtable reconstruction. There are several widely used techniques for backtable reconstruction of the RRHA to a single conduit. If these reconstructions fail, due to technical reasons or size discrepancies, an alternative method of rearterialization is needed. We describe six cases in which an RRHA was anastomosed to the donors gastroduodenal artery (GDA) stump utilizing a loupe magnification technique. In four cases the reconstruction was performed at the time of the backtable procedure and in two after reperfusion and failure of the original RRHA to splenic artery (SA) reconstruction. In all cases, the anastomoses remained patent. All patients had Doppler sonography and two had subsequent arteriograms that verified anastomotic patency. This method of reconstruction is more demanding technically but obviates the awkward 90-degree twist of the hepatic artery when an RRHA is anastomosed to the SA stump.

A Modified Technique of Orthotopic Transplant of the Kidney in Rabbits

In this study kidneys were harvested from bred-for-research cats weighing 4 to 5 kg. General principles of donor bilateral nephrectomy en bloc with aorta, vena cava, renal vessels, and ureters were followed. After the harvest the grafts were placed in lactated Ringer slush. A cuff was prepared on the renal vein over a 10 French plastic tube. The aorta was divided and left in connection with the renal artery at each side. Twenty female checkered Flemish giant rabbits weighing 4.0-6.0 kg served as recipients. After premedication with 40 mg/kg of ketamine, anesthesia was maintained with repeated doses (every 10-15 min) of a 0.1-mL mixture of 5 parts ketamine and 1 part acepromazine diluted 50% in a normal saline. Arterial pressure, CVP, blood gases, and temperature were monitored. Through a limited midline incision a native left nephrectomy was performed. The venous anastomosis was performed with a cuff technique without clamping the vena cava (which causes severe hemodynamic instability); the anastomotic time was 2-3 min. The arterial anastomosis was performed with an end-to-side aorta-to-aorta anastomosis; the anastomotic time was 5 to 7 min. There were no episodes of venous or arterial thrombosis. The donor procedure took approximately 40 min, and the backtable preparation of the graft an additional 45 to 60 min. Preparation of the recipient for the anastomosis took 15 min and the anastomotic time (warm ischemia) was 13 +/- 5 min. In this model suitable for xenograft research the duration of the surgery in the recipient has been greatly reduced because of (1) the previous backtable preparation of the graft, and (2) the cuff technique used for venous anastomosis. The present anesthesia regimen and careful hemodynamic monitoring were also important in the success of this model.