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Liver transplantation (LT) is frequently complicated by coagulopathy associated with end-stage liver disease, which is often multifactorial and associated with hemostatic disturbances affecting both the procoagulant and anticoagulant systems. This rebalanced coagulation system may lead to bleeding diathesis or increased clot formation. Conventional coagulation tests cannot reflect these complex changes because they can only illustrate deficiencies in the procoagulant system. Viscoelastic tests such as rotational thromboelastometry (ROTEM) have been used in LT and have shown useful for detecting coagulopathy and guiding transfusions. Implementation of ROTEM-guided bleeding management algorithms has proven effectiveness in reducing bleeding, transfusion needs, complication rates, and healthcare costs in LT. This document is intended to provide a practice algorithm for the management of major bleeding and coagulopathy during LT and to encourage adaptation of the guidelines to individual institutional circumstances and resources.

Background: Reducing anesthesia-controlled time (ACT) such as extubation time may improve operation room (OR) efficiency result from different anesthetic techniques. However, the information about the difference in ACT between desflurane (DES) anesthesia and propofol-based total intravenous anesthesia (TIVA) techniques for open liver resection under general anesthesia is not available in the literature., Methods: This retrospective study uses our hospital database to analyze the ACT of open liver resection after either DES/fentanyl-based anesthesia or TIVA via target-controlled infusion (TCI) with fentanyl/propofol from January 2010 to December 2011. The various time intervals including waiting for anesthesia time, anesthesia time, surgical time, extubation time, exit from OR after extubation, total OR time, and post-anesthetic care unit stay time and percentage of prolonged extubation (≥ 15 minutes) were compared between the two anesthetic techniques., Results: We included 143 hepatocellular carcinoma patients, with 82 patients receiving TIVA and 61 patients receiving DES. The extubation time was faster (10.1 ± 3.2 min vs. 11.8 ± 5.2 min; P = 0.03), and the incidence of prolonged extubation was lower (9.8% vs. 26.8%; P = 0.02) in the DES group than in the TIVA group. The factors contributed to prolonged extubation were age, sex, anesthetic technique, and anesthesia time., Conclusion: The DES anesthesia provided faster extubation time and lower incidence of prolonged extubation compared with propofol-based TIVA by TCI in elective open liver resection. Besides, older age, male, TIVA, and lengthy anesthesia time were factors affecting prolonged extubation.