BACKGROUND: The timing of tracheal extubation in patients undergoing major intraoperative procedures is controversial. Immediate postoperative tracheal extubation after liver transplantation was not popularized. But in these days, early tracheal extubation has been safely performed in certain cases and routine use of mechanical ventilation is being questioned. We performed preliminary study of our 25 liver transplantation cases to evaluate factors affecting duration and indications of postoperative mechanical ventilation. METHODS: Our 25 cases were divided into two groups by periodic difference - early 13 cases (group 1) and late 12 cases (group 2). We evaluated preoperative UNOS (united network for organ sharing) scale, intraoperative transfusion and vasopressor requirement, postoperative multiple organ complications which would have influence upon tracheal extubation. RESULTS: We found great difference between two groups in duration of mechanical ventilation (Group 1: 94.4+/-7.12 hrs, Group 2: 36.1+/-28.3 hrs) and ICU stay (Group 1: 22.8+/-8.3 days, Group 2: 11.8+/-5.5 days). CONCLUSIONS: We concluded that early tracheal extubation in selected liver transplantation cases was safe and effective because it could shorten duration of ICU stay and reduce postoperative mortality. But more experience and knowledge may be needed to get more ideal guidelines for postoperative mechanical ventilation.
Airway Extubation* ; Humans ; Liver Transplantation* ; Liver* ; Mortality ; Respiration, Artificial

The survival rate after liver transplantation has greatly improved. However, complications such as infection and rejection remain major causes of mortality and morbidity. The fungal infections are associated with high mortality rates, despite having a relatively lower incidence, compared with bacterial and viral infections. Difficulty in establishing an early diagnosis, lack of effective therapy, difficult management of certain antifungal agent, limited data for antifungal prophylaxis presents remaining problems.3) We report our experience with one case of syatemic candidemia after orthotopic liver transplantation.
Candidemia* ; Early Diagnosis ; Incidence ; Liver Transplantation* ; Liver* ; Mortality ; Survival Rate

The survival rate after liver transplantation has greatly improved. However, complications such as infection and rejection remain major causes of mortality and morbidity. The fungal infections are associated with high mortality rates, despite having a relatively lower incidence, compared with bacterial and viral infections. Difficulty in establishing an early diagnosis, lack of effective therapy, difficult management of certain antifungal agent, limited data for antifungal prophylaxis presents remaining problems.3) We report our experience with one case of syatemic candidemia after orthotopic liver transplantation.
Candidemia* ; Early Diagnosis ; Incidence ; Liver Transplantation* ; Liver* ; Mortality ; Survival Rate

Humans ; Liver Failure ; mortality ; surgery ; Liver Transplantation ; mortality ; Models, Biological ; Prognosis ; Risk Factors ; Survival Rate

China ; Humans ; Liver Transplantation ; methods ; mortality ; trends ; Survival Rate ; trends

BACKGROUNDThere are increasing numbers of patients who survive more than one year after liver transplantation. Many studies have focused on the early mortality of these patients. However, the factors affecting long-term survival are not fully understood. This study aims to evaluate prognostic factors predicting long-term survival and to explore measures for improving the survival outcomes of patients who underwent liver transplantation for benign end-stage liver diseases.

METHODSThe causes of late death after liver transplantation and potential prognostic factors were retrospectively analyzed for 221 consecutive patients who underwent liver transplantation from October 2003 to June 2008. Twenty-seven variables were assessed using the Kaplan-Meier method, and those variables found to be univariately significant at P < 0.10 were entered into a backward step-down Cox proportional hazard regression analysis to identify the independent prognostic factors influencing the recipients' long-term survival.

RESULTSTwenty-eight recipients died one year after liver transplantation. The major causes of late mortality were infectious complications, biliary complications, and Hepatitis B virus recurrence/reinfection. After Cox analysis, the five remaining co-variables were: age, ABO blood group, cold ischemia time, post-infection region, and biliary complications.

CONCLUSIONSThe major causes of late mortality were infection, biliary complications and Hepatitis B virus recurrence/reinfection. Five variables (Age, ABO blood group, cold ischemia time, infection, and biliary complications) had significant impacts on patient survival.

End Stage Liver Disease ; mortality ; surgery ; Hepatitis B ; mortality ; Humans ; Liver Transplantation ; Postoperative Complications ; mortality ; Retrospective Studies

Since the hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) develops in cirrhotic liver and is often multicentric, liver transplantation (LT) seems to be a rational approach for the treatment of HCC. Current selection criteria of LT for HCC are Milan criteria (single nodule < or = 5 cm , or < or = 3 nodules and Carcinoma, Hepatocellular/etiology/*mortality/*surgery ; Humans ; Liver Cirrhosis/*complications ; Liver Neoplasms/etiology/*mortality/*surgery ; *Liver Transplantation ; Salvage Therapy ; Survival Rate

PURPOSE: The major limitation of adult-to-adult living donor liver transplantation (A-A LDLT) is the adequacy of the graft size. As an alternative, dual grafts from two living donors can solve the problem of graft-size insufficiency and guarantee the donor safety in many occasions. The present study aims to introduce the usefulness of dual-grafts A-A LDLT by review of our single center experience. METHODS: After the first successful pediatric LDLT in December 1994 and A-A LDLT in February 1997, 392 LDLTs including 73 pediatric and 319 adult cases were performed at Asan Medical Center until December 2001. Among 319 A-A LDLTs, 20 recipients implanted dual grafts were retrospectively analysed from March 2000 to December 2001. RESULTS: The ratio of graft volume to standard liver volume of the recipients ranged from 46.6% to 78.9%. More than 50% of the standard liver volume of the recipients was implanted in 16 patients. There was acute rejection episode in two patients, which were responded by pulsed steroid therapy. There were 3 in- hospital mortality (<3 month posttransplantation). CONCLUSION: In LDLT, the donor safety is the major concern. Although the donor has a large right lobe of liver that is adequate as a graft for large-size recipient, the remaining left lobe of liver is sometimes too small to endanger the donor safety. In this circumstance, the donor cannot be accepted to donate his or her right or left lobe of liver. Dual grafts from two living donors can help to alleviate the problem of small-for-size graft and secure the donor safety.
Adult ; Chungcheongnam-do ; Hospital Mortality ; Humans ; Liver Transplantation* ; Liver* ; Living Donors* ; Retrospective Studies ; Tissue Donors ; Transplants*

Aspegillosis is a fatal opportunistic disease using immunosupppresive drugs after liver transplantation. Mortality of aspergillosis after liver transplantation reaches 100% and survival rate pulmonary aspergillosis is less than 5% using medical treatment only and pneumonectomy and medical treatment revealed better results. We experienced the invasive pulmonary aspergillosis developed a patient who suffered from bacterial pneumonia and had long peroid of mechanical ventillation after liver transplantation. We performed pneumonectomy and antifungal medical treatment for about 50 days and he recovered from invasive aspergillosis.
Aspergillosis* ; Humans ; Invasive Pulmonary Aspergillosis ; Liver Transplantation* ; Liver* ; Mortality ; Pneumonectomy* ; Pneumonia, Bacterial ; Pulmonary Aspergillosis ; Survival Rate

Neurological complications following liver transplantation are more common than after other organ transplants. These complications include seizure in about 8% of cases, which is associated with morbidity and mortality. Seizure should be treated immediately, and the process of differential diagnosis has to be performed appropriately in order to avoid permanent neurologic deficit. We herein report a case of status epilepticus after liver transplantation. The status epilepticus was treated promptly and the cause of seizure was assessed. The patient was discharged without any complication.
Diagnosis, Differential ; Humans ; Liver Transplantation* ; Liver* ; Mortality ; Neurologic Manifestations ; Posterior Leukoencephalopathy Syndrome ; Seizures ; Status Epilepticus* ; Transplants