Objective To evaluate the efficacy of perioperative use of tigecycline in preventing infection and the incidence of hypofibrinogenemia in liver transplant recipients. Methods Clinical data of 40 liver transplant recipients given with tigecycline to prevent infection were retrospectively analyzed. The incidence of infection in recipients and donor-derived infection were analyzed. The changes of clinical indexes in recipients during, upon the completion and (7±2) d after tigecycline treatment were analyzed, respectively. The incidence and treatment of hypofibrinogenemia were summarized. Results Among 40 liver transplant recipients, 2 cases were infected by aspergillus niger and cytomegalovirus, out of the antibacterial spectrum of tigecycline. After adjusting the anti-infection regimen, the infection was properly controlled. Liver allografts were positive for relevant culture in 9 cases, whereas none of them progressed into donor-derived infection. Approximately at postoperative 2 weeks, all 40 recipients restored liver function and were discharged from hospital. Among them, 6 recipients developed hypofibrinogenemia complicated with coagulation disorder at postoperative 2-4 d, whereas transaminase level, bilirubin level and infection-related indexes were gradually decreased after liver transplantation, and albumin level was stable. After supplemented with human fibrinogen and prothrombin complex, coagulation function was improved, but fibrinogen level persistently declined. After terminating use of tigecycline, fibrinogen level was gradually restored to normal range, which might be an adverse drug reaction induced by tigecycline. Conclusions Perioperative anti-infection regimen including tigecycline may reduce the incidence of infection caused by sensitive bacteria in liver transplant recipients. Nevertheless, the incidence of hypofibrinogenemia should be intimately monitored throughout the use of tigecycline.

Objective:To summarize the incidence of acute rejection (AR) after pediatric kidney transplantation (KT) at a single center and examine its impact on graft/patient survival and risk factors for AR.Methods:This is a retrospective cohort study including pediatric recipients who underwent kidney transplantation in past 8 years.After excluding recipients of graft thrombosis within a week post-transplant and lost to follow-ups, a total of 143 cases were ultimately recruited and assigned into two groups of AR (n=29) and non-AR (n=114).Basic profiles of both donors and recipients and graft/patient survival rate were compared between two groups.Relative risk factors for AR episodes were also examined by Logistic regression.Results:Renal grafts for 130/143 cases (90.9%) were harvested from deceased donors and 120(83.9%) cases from children.Twenty-seven transplants (18.9%) were performed in infants and young recipients aged < 3 years.During a median follow-up of 33 months, 34 AR episodes occurred in 29(20.3%) patients.Rate of re-transplantation (27.6% vs. 7.9%), pediatric donor (96.5% vs. 80.7%) and rabbit anti-human thymocyte globulin (rATG) induction (79.3% vs. 36%) were significantly higher in AR group than non-AR group ( P=0.007, P=0.046, P<0.001).Multivariate regression analysis indicated that basiliximab induction caused a significant reduction in the risk of AR incidence as compared with rATG induction (odds ratio 0.13, 95% confidence interval 0.04-0.43, P<0.001).The median time of AR incidence was 1.3 months post-transplantation and 23 episodes (67.6%) were confirmed by biopsy.After anti-rejection treatment, 52.9%(n=18) of the cases achieved a full recovery and 38.3% (n=13) had improved graft function.However, 3 cases (8.8%) developed irreversible graft failure.The 1/3-year graft survival rates were significantly lower in AR group than those in non-AR group (75.3% vs. 95.2%, 68.4% vs. 90.4%, P=0.01), and there was no significant difference in 1-and 3-year patient survival rates between two groups. Conclusions:The incidence of AR is relatively high in pediatric renal transplantation, which has an impact on graft survival.Basiliximab induction can effectively reduce the risk of AR.

Examining the clinical data of 4 recipients with early duodenal fistula after liver transplantation, this review summarizes proper managements and provided references for the clinical prevention and treatment of this complication.

Objective:We employ different regimens of induction therapy in living donor ABO-incompatible kidney transplantation(ABOi-KT) recipients to compare their clinical outcomes during 6 months post-KT.Methods:A retrospective analysis was conducted for the relevant clinical data of 41 ABOi-KT recipients from June 2018 to September 2022.Thirteen recipients on induction therapy of anti-human T lymphocyte porcine immunoglobin(pATG)were enrolled in pATG group; 19 recipients on induction therapy of basiliximab in basiliximab group; 9 recipients on induction therapy of rabbit anti-human thymocyte immunoglobulin(rATG)in rATG group.Differences in age, gender, body mass index(BMI), dialysis modality/duration, sideness of donor kidney, frequency of blood group antibody treatment, dose of rituximab, basic blood group antibody titers of IgG/IgM, and the gender and BMI of recipient's donor were compared for three groups.Immune status was assessed by comparing absolute lymphocyte count before pre-treatment and within 6 months post-KT in recipients under different induction regimens among 3 groups by one-way analysis of variance.Transplant kidney function was assessed by comparing the levels of serum creatinine, estimated glomerular filtration rate(eGFR)and serum urea nitrogen using one-way analysis of variance.The incidence of delayed graft function(DGF), acute rejection(AR)and infection was compared among three groups.Results:Regarding baseline profiles, except for donor age pATG group[(60.23±6.10)years]versus basiliximab group[(51.95±6.97)years]was statistically significant( P=0.002), the differences in the remaining parameters were not statistically significant among three groups(all P>0.05). At Day 1/3/7/10/14 post-KT, absolute lymphocyte counts were(0.17±0.07)×10 9/L, (0.27±0.14)×10 9/L, (0.85±0.40)×10 9/L, (1.05±0.56)×10 9/L and(1.10±0.56)×10 9/L in pATG group and(0.69±0.04)×10 9/L, (0.18±0.21)×10 9/L, (0.57±0.44)×10 9/L, (0.67±0.45)×10 9/L and(0.81±0.46)×10 9/L in rATG group respectively.They were all higher than those in basiliximab group[(0.46±0.18)×10 9/L, (0.67±0.26)×10 9/L, (1.29±0.48)×10 9/L, (1.56±0.49)×10 9/L, (1.75±0.53)×10 9/L]and the differences were statistically significant(all P<0.05). No statistically significant difference existed in absolute lymphocyte count among 3 groups before pre-treatment and after Day 21 post-KT(all P>0.05). At Week 1/2/4/12/24 post-KT, the differences in serum levels of creatinine and urea nitrogen were not statistically significant( P>0.05). At Month 1/3 post-KT, eGFR was(47.24±14.51)and(49.94±14.31)ml·min -1·(1.73 2) -1 in rATG group and they were lower than(67.36±21.60)and(65.00±14.67)ml·min -1·(1.73 2) -1 in basiliximab group with a statistically significant difference( P<0.05). However, at Week 1/2/24 post-KT, no statistically significant difference existed in eGFR among 3 groups( P>0.05). In ATG, basiliximab and rATG groups, DGF(1 case, 1 case, 1 case), AR(2 cases, 2 cases, 1 case)and infection(4 cases, 7 cases, 3 cases)occurred during 6 months post-KT. Conclusions:Through a limited sample of single centers, no statistically significant difference existed in graft function recovery for ABOi-KT recipients on induction therapies of pATG, basiliximab and rATG.And DGF, AR and infections occurred in all three groups.However, there were little inter-group differences.

In recent years, although the quantity of organ donation after citizen's death has been constantly increased, a large number of patients with end-stage renal diseases are waiting for kidney transplantation every year. The imbalance between donor and recipient is still one of the main problems affecting kidney transplantation in clinical practice. Therefore, it is of clinical significance to accurately evaluate the quality of donor kidney and fully utilize the expanded criteria donor kidney. Contrast-enhanced ultrasound has been gradually applied in the detection of multiple solid organs due to its safety, portability, real-time detection, quantification and other characteristics, and it also has promising application prospect in the evaluation of donor kidney quality. In this article, the advantages and limitations of current evaluation methods for donor kidney and current status and advantages of contrast-enhanced ultrasound in donor kidney evaluation were reviewed, and the application prospect of contrast-enhanced ultrasound in the evaluation of donor kidney quality was discussed, aiming to increase the methods and enhance the accuracy for donor kidney evaluation, and provide reference for rational use of expanded criteria donor kidney.

Intestinal transplantation has become the most ideal treatment for intestinal failure. Modern clinical intestinal transplantation includes three types: isolated intestinal transplantation, combined liver-intestinal transplantation and abdominal multivisceral transplantation. The immunological, anatomical and physiological characteristics of intestinal grafts significantly differ from those of other solid transplant organs. Consequently, intestinal grafts could develop specific and severe complications, such as acute rejection, chronic rejection, graft-versus-host disease (GVHD), infection and posttransplant lymphoproliferative disease (PTLD), among which acute rejection and infection are extremely challenging. Endoscopic examination and intestinal mucosal biopsy of intestinal grafts could be performed to make timely diagnosis and differentiation of these complications, then deliver targeted treatment and guarantee the long-term survival of recipients and intestinal grafts.

Objective To analyze the clinical efficacy of different anti-tumor therapies for recurrence and metastasis after liver transplantation for primary liver cancer (liver cancer). Methods Clinical data of 145 recipients undergoing liver transplantation for liver cancer were retrospectively analyzed. The overall survival and recurrence and metastasis after liver transplantation for liver cancer were analyzed. The clinical efficacy of different anti-tumor therapies for recipients with recurrence and metastasis were compared. Results Sixty-five recipients (44.8%) developed recurrence and metastasis. The median recurrence time was 6 months. Among them, 1 case underwent secondary liver transplantation after recurrence and died of intestinal perforation. Twenty-four recipients (37%) received targeted drug therapy with a median tumor-bearing survival of 22 months. Eleven recipients (17%) received radiotherapy or chemotherapy with a median tumor-bearing survival of 11 months. Nine recipients (14%) received local treatment (surgical resection or radiofrequency ablation), and the median tumor-bearing survival was 8 months. Twenty recipients (31%) abandoned anti-tumor therapy, and the median tumor-bearing survival was 3 months. The tumor-bearing survival of recipients receiving anti-tumor therapy was significantly longer than that of recipients without anti-tumor therapy (P < 0.001). The tumor-bearing survival of recipients receiving targeted drug therapy was significantly longer than that of those receiving other anti-tumor therapies (P=0.03). The tumor-bearing survival of recipients receiving local treatment, radiotherapy and chemotherapy was considerably longer than that of those who abandoned anti-tumor therapy (P=0.004). Conclusions Surgical resection and radiofrequency ablation are the optimal therapies for recipients with recurrence and metastasis after liver transplantation for liver cancer. For recipients with multi-focal tumors who fail to receive local treatment, those receiving targeted drug therapy obtain the longest survival. In addition, radiotherapy and chemotherapy can also prolong the survival of recipients with recurrence and metastasis.

Objective:To explore the early warning value of carbapenem-resistant Klebsiella pneumoniae (CRKP) positivity in liver transplantation recipients with rectal swabs, examine the risk factors of CRKP bloodstream infection and provide the relevant treatments.Methods:From June 2018 to December 2019 in Organ Transplantation Research Institute Affiliated Tongji Hospital Tongji Medical College Huazhong University of Science & Technology, 148 cases of liver transplantation recipients with positive CRKP rectal swabbing were recruited. Clinical data were retrospectively analyzed. And the risk factors of CRKP bloodstream infections were examined for intervention and non-intervention groups to observe the effect of interventions of CRKP bloodstream infections.Results:Among them, 23 cases (15.5%) were positive for CRKP and 5 cases (21.7%) were infected with CRKP bloodstream. Rectal swab culture was negative in 125 cases and no bloodstream infection occurred. Long-term use of broad-spectrum antimicrobial agents, severe basic diseases (severe hepatitis), postoperative delayed graft liver function recovery, acute renal failure requiring renal replacement therapy (RRT) and postoperative anti-thymocyte globulin (ATG) induction were risk factors. In intervention group, there were 2 cases (11.1%) of 18 patients with positive CRKP in rectal swab culture in late stage. Among 5 CRKP-positive recipients without intervention, 3 cases (60%) developed later CRKP bloodstream infection. The incidence of bloodstream infection was significantly lower in intervention group than that in non-intervention group ( P<0.05). Conclusions:Rectal swab culture for liver transplantation recipients provides early warning for CRKP bloodstream infection. Interventions for CRKP positive high-risk recipients with rectal swab culture may reduce the occurrence of CRKP bloodstream infection and lower the risk of CRKP bloodstream infection in liver transplantation recipients.

The pathology of liver allograft biopsy is not only essential for the evaluation of liver donor, but also for the diagnosis and differential diagnosis of posttransplantation complications. With the development of liver transplantation in clinical practice, relevant studies of the pathological diagnosis of liver allograft complications have been deepened. Banff classification on liver allograft pathology have been gradually established within the international community. In China, pathological studies related to liver allograft pathology have been steadily carried out, and the pathological diagnostic basis of liver allograft pathology suitable for the clinical practice of liver transplantation in China has been gradually formed. This article reviews the history of Banff liver allograft pathology and major pathological lesions of liver allograft complications, aiming to provide reference for implementing pathological diagnosis of liver allograft pathology in China, assisting clinical diagnosis and targeted treatment of complications after liver transplantation, and further improving the survival of liver allograft and recipients.

Allografts ; COVID-19 ; China/epidemiology* ; Disease Outbreaks ; Humans ; Kidney Transplantation/adverse effects* ; SARS-CoV-2