Relation of Preoperative and Postoperative Echocardiographic Parameters With Rejection and Mortality in Liver Transplant Patients

Abstract

Objectives: Survival in liver transplant after end-stage liver disease is associated with major cardiac functions. In a significant number of patients with end-stage liver disease, cardiac dysfunctions may be observed, which can include high-output heart failure, cardiac valve disease, and pulmonary venous and arterial hypertension. All of these affect perioperative survival. The aim of our study was to determine whether preoperative and postoperative echocardiographic parameters, specifically right heart-related tricuspid regurgitation, estimated systolic pulmonary arterial pressure, and tricuspid annular plane systolic excursion, are associated with rejection and mortality in liver transplant patients.

Materials and Methods: Adult patients (> 18 years old) who underwent liver transplant at our center between January 2011 and March 2017 were included in the study, with 64 patients retrospectively screened. The echocardiographic images that were taken immediately before and immediately after liver transplant were evaluated. The patients were divided into 2 groups according to rejection data and mortality. All parameters were analyzed for both variables.

Results: For the 24 patients with liver rejection and 40 patients without liver rejection, there were no statistically significant differences in terms of demographic data, echocardiographic parameters, and laboratory data. However, when patients were evaluated according to survival, there was a statistically significant difference between these 2 groups concerning the echocardiography parameters of systolic pulmonary arterial pressure (P = .005), tricuspid annular plane systolic excursion (P = .001), and postoperative right ventricular width (P = .01).

Conclusions: Echocardiography, being a simple and easily accessible technique that is reliable in excluding pulmonary hypertension diagnosis, can be used as a guide in the evaluation of right ventricular function and tricuspid regurgitation, particularly in patients who are not hemodynamically stable before and after liver transplant.