Search

There is no consensus about long-term outcomes in patients with biliary atresia. We retrospectively reviewed the long-term outcomes in pediatric patients who underwent living donor liver transplantation for biliary atresia.Between May 2001 and December 2020, 221 (73%) of 302 pediatric patients who underwent living donor liver transplantation had biliary atresia. The median age at living donor liver transplantation was 1.2 (range 0.2-16.5) years, and follow-up was 10.3 ± 5.5 years.The 10-year graft survival rates in patients with and without biliary atresia were 94% and 89%, respectively (P = .019). The 10-year graft survival was significantly poorer in patients ≥12 years of age (84%) versus those12 years of age at living donor liver transplantation (0-2 years: 95%; 2-12 years: 96%) (P = .016). The causes of graft failure in patients with biliary atresia included late-onset refractory rejection (n = 6), bowel perforation (n = 2), and acute encephalitis (n = 2), as well as cerebral hemorrhage, hepatic vein thrombosis, and sepsis (n = 1 for all). All 7 patients with graft failure due to refractory rejection and hepatic vein thrombosis underwent repeated liver transplantation and are alive in 2021. The rates of post-transplant portal vein complications and early-onset acute cellular rejection in patients with biliary atresia were higher than in those without biliary atresia (P = .042 and P = .022, respectively). In 2021, of 60 adolescents with biliary atresia, 14 (23%) reported medication nonadherence. The rate of liver dysfunction due to late-onset acute cellular rejection and graft failure due to late-onset refractory rejection in patients with nonadherence was higher than in patients with satisfactory adherence (P = .009).The long-term prognosis after living donor liver transplantation in pediatric patients with biliary atresia is quite good. However, long-term support to enhance medication adherence is required in adolescents with biliary atresia.

Sinusoidal obstruction syndrome (SOS) after liver transplantation (LT) is a rare and potentially lethal complication. We retrospectively reviewed the outcomes of patients with post-transplant SOS.Between May 2001 and December 2019, of 332 patients who underwent LT, 5 (1.5%) developed SOS. The median age at LT was 1.7 years (range 0.1-66.5). SOS was histopathologically diagnosed and classified as early-onset (1 month) or late-onset.The median time to diagnosis of SOS was one month after LT. All patients developed acute cellular rejection before SOS, and the cause of SOS was acute cellular rejection in four patients and unknown in one. The treatment of SOS included conversion to tacrolimus from cyclosporine, intrahepatic hepatic vein stent placement, strengthening of immunosuppression, and plasma exchange. The 5-year graft survival rates in patients with and without SOS were 53.0% and 92.5%, respectively (p 0.001). Of three patients with early-onset SOS, two patients improved and are doing well, and one patient died of graft failure four months after LT.The cause and treatment of post-transplant SOS are not yet defined. The poor outcomes in patients with early-onset SOS may be improved by strengthening of immunosuppression. Patients with late-onset SOS are ultimately treated by repeat LT.

Objectives Predicting the risk of posthepatectomy liver failure is important when performing extended hepatectomy. However, there is no established method to evaluate liver function and improve preoperative liver function in pediatric patients. Materials and methods We show the clinical features of pediatric patients who underwent living donor liver transplant for posthepatectomy liver failure in hepatoblastoma. The subjects were 4 patients with hepatoblastoma who were classified as Pretreatment Extent of Disease III, 2 of whom had distal metastasis (chest wall and lung). Results Hepatic right trisegmentectomy was performed in 3 patients and extended left hepatectomy in 1 patient. The median alpha-fetoprotein level at the diagnosis of hepatoblastoma was 986300 ng/mL (range, 22500-2726350 ng/mL), and the median alpha-fetoprotein level before hepatectomy was 8489 ng/mL (range, 23-22500 ng/mL). The remnant liver volume after hepatectomy was 33.3% (range, 20% to 34.9%). Four patients had cholangitis after hepatectomy and progressed to posthepatectomy liver failure. The peak serum total bilirubin after hepatectomy was 11.4 mg/dL (range, 8.7-14.6 mg/dL). Living donor liver transplant was performed for these 4 patients with posthepatectomy liver failure, and they did not have a recurrence. Conclusions When the predictive remnant liver volume by computed tomography-volumetry before extended hepatectomy for patients with hepatoblastoma is less than 40%, the possibility of posthepatectomy liver failure should be recognized.

Background There have been no reports on the effectiveness of the administration of antithrombin III (AT III) for post-transplant portal vein thrombosis (PVT). We herein report a case of post-transplant PVT that was resolved by AT III treatment after living donor liver transplantation (LDLT). Case presentation The patient was a 57-year-old man who had been diagnosed with decompensate liver cirrhosis by hepatitis C virus infection. He presented with repeated hepatic coma and refractory ascites. Computed tomography (CT) revealed PVT of Yerdel classification grade II before LDLT. He underwent ABO-identical LDLT using a right lobe graft. A liver function test revealed elevated liver enzyme levels on post-operative day (POD) 14. The CT examination on POD 15 revealed PVT in the left side of the main portal vein at the side of left gastric vein ligation. AT III treatment from POD 15 to POD 24 was performed. Magnetic resonance imaging revealed that the PVT had decreased 10% on POD 27. Furthermore, AT III treatment from POD 28 to POD 32 was performed. The CT examination demonstrated the disappearance of PVT on POD 69 and thereafter, he had no recurrence of PVT on 10 post-operative month (POM). Conclusions The present case suggests that the administration of AT III is safe and suitable for the treatment of post-transplant PVT.