Liver Transplant for Fulminant Hepatic Failure: A Single-Center Experience

Abstract

Objectives: Acute liver failure is a life-threatening condition with sudden onset liver injury, decreased liver functions, hepatic encephalopathy, and coagulopathy in patients without preexisting liver disease. In this study, we sought to evaluate the results of liver transplant as a treatment for acute liver failure.

Materials and Methods: Between November 1988 and March 2015, we performed 482 liver transplants in 471 patients. We performed 36 liver transplants in 35 patients because of acute liver failure. Only 5 of these were from deceased donors. Thirty of those 34 patients were pediatric (85%) and 5 were adults (15%).

Results: Five patients died (4 in early postoperative period and 1 during the 18th month of living-donor liver transplant). We diagnosed 11 acute rejections (32%); 6 biliary leaks (17%); 6 intraabdominal hemorrhage (17%); 5 hepatic arterial thromboses (15%), and 1 venous complication (3%) during the early postoperative period. We have no morbidity or mortality in living-donor liver transplants.

Conclusions: Living-donor liver transplants are an efficient and successful treatment for acute liver failure patients. In our center, we mostly consider and prefer living-donor liver transplants to deceased-donor liver transplant because of the paucity of organ donation, especially for pediatric patients. Considering acceptable postoperative complications, living-donor liver transplant is a lifesaving treatment for acute liver failure.