1. Quality of life 10 years after liver transplantation: The impact of graft histology.
- Author
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Karam V, Sebagh M, Rifai K, Yilmaz F, Bhangui P, Danet C, Saliba F, Samuel D, Castaing D, Adam R, and Feray C
- Abstract
Aim: To evaluate the relationship between the state of transplanted liver graft and the recipient quality of life (QOL) of histologically proven lesions in a 10-year post liver transplantation (LT) cohort of patients., Methods: Seventy-two recipients with a functional first graft at 10 years post-LT underwent liver biopsy and completed a QOL questionnaire. Logistic regression analysis was used to explore associations between histological, clinical and QOL criteria., Results: Ten years after LT, fibrosis was detected in 53% of patients, and affected the general health perception, while ductopenia, present in 36%, affected the well-being ( P = 0.05). Hepatic steatosis (HS) was present in 33% of patients and was associated with the worst QOL score on multiple domains. When compared to patients without HS, patients with HS had significantly higher incidence of fibrosis ( P = 0.03), hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection ( P = 0.007), and more patients had retired from their job ( P = 0.03). Recurrent or de novo HCV-associated fibrosis and patient retirement as objective variables, and abdominal pain or discomfort and joint aches or pains as subjective variables, emerged as independent determinants of HS., Conclusion: Long-term liver graft lesions, mainly HS presumably as a surrogate marker of HCV infection, may have a substantial impact on QOL 10 years after LT., Competing Interests: Conflict-of-interest statement: The authors who have taken part in this study declare that they do not have anything to disclose regarding conflict of interest with respect to this manuscript.
- Published
- 2016
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