Liver transplantation and surgery : official publication of the American Association for the Study of Liver Diseases and the International Liver Transplantation Society最新文献

In summary, a Child-Pugh class A cirrhotic patient without decompensation has a relatively long and stable natural history, but poor survival once decompensation with ascites or variceal bleeding has occurred. Thus, reasonable criteria for listing a patient for liver transplantation should be clinical decompensation of cirrhosis, particularly ascites or variceal bleeding, or combined clinical decompensation and biochemical deterioration of hepatic synthetic function that meets criteria for Child-Pugh class B or C status. On the basis of analysis of data regarding the natural history of compensated and decompensated cirrhosis, general principles of a minimal listing criteria were proposed (Table 5). These principles were used to establish non-disease-specific minimal listing criteria that are broadly applicable to all types of chronic liver diseases (Table 6). Some examples of proposed disease-specific minimal listing criteria are shown in Table 7.

Results show that the use of sequential surgical treatment, employing Kasai portoenterostomy in infancy, followed by selective liver transplantation for children with progressive hepatic deterioration yields improved overall survival. All children with successful Kasai portoenterostomy procedures who do not require OLT are survivors. Using newer transplant techniques, the 5-year survival rate for children who receive transplants with a primary diagnosis of biliary atresia was 82%. This yields an overall survival rate of 86% in this entire study population. Limited donor availability and increased complications after liver transplantation in infants less than 1 year of age mitigate against the use of primary liver transplantation without prior portoenterostomy for infants with biliary atresia. At present, these two operative procedures should be used as sequential and complementary modes of treatment rather than as competitive procedures. When biliary atresia is not recognized in infancy and established cirrhosis has resulted, primary transplantation should be offered as the initial surgical treatment.

It is now accepted that patients who receive a liver transplant for alcohol-related liver disease have a rate of survival similar to those who receive grafts for other indications. Abstinence from alcohol before liver transplantation is important in ensuring that the liver will not recover, but the period of abstinence required before transplantation is undertaken is uncertain. Prognostic models for assessing patients with alcoholic liver disease have been developed but correlate poorly with each other. A return to alcohol consumption after transplantation is not uncommon, although graft failure or damage is uncommon. However, alcohol-related liver disease is becoming an increasing indication for liver transplantation. As the number of potential candidates exceeds the supply of donors, some form of rationing will be required. The general public places a lower priority on transplantation for alcoholic liver disease than for other indications, and this will need to be considered by those who allocate the donor livers.

Surgical resection remains the best option for potential cure and long-term survival in patients with HCC. The question of to what extent transplantation for HCC should be performed remains controversial. There appears to be a definite role for OLT in the treatment of HCC, with many series showing improved survival over resection, especially with "favorable" tumors. What remains to be determined are the best patients and the best protocol. There is little question that patients with small unifocal tumors do well after OLT. It is the patient who falls outside of these narrow guidelines that poses a problem in clinical decision making and organ allocation. The ability to determine relative risk of recurrence of HCC would perhaps allow a more equitable allocation of a scarce resource. Currently, we evaluate each patient with HCC on an individual basis, making the best decision possible based on the patient's clinical status, our most advanced current imaging studies, and known clinical prognostic factors (Table 6). Adequate staging is essential to determine suitable candidates. Advances in multimodal adjuvant therapy are needed for patients with poor prognostic factors to achieve results similar to what is seen in those who receive transplants for nonmalignant diseases. Attempts at resection should be performed for those patients presenting with Child's class A cirrhosis, because these are the patients who would tolerate a resection with acceptable morbidity and mortality. Limited resections based on segmental anatomy may be consider in "good risk" Child's class B cirrhotics, considering the current organ shortage. Child's class C and decompensated Child's class B patients without significant risk factors should be evaluated for transplantation, and preoperative chemoembolization should be considered to prevent spread while the patient is on the waiting list. These patients should be monitored with imaging studies and by AFP levels on a regular basis while they await their transplant. After transplantation, chemotherapy should be considered for those patients with moderate to high risk of recurrence, within the guidelines of an institutional or multicenter protocol. In patients with multiple poor prognostic factors, or those who are too ill to undergo resection or transplantation, palliative measures may be used. As the need for organs increases, and the wait continues to grow, it becomes increasingly difficult to justify the use of a scarce resource for patients with a known less desirable outcome. On the other hand, we must be careful not to exclude an entire group of patients from a potentially curative procedure. We now have evidence that survival after transplantation for HCC in carefully chosen patients can equal that of benign disease. We need to be selective and cautious in our choice of recipients, but not exclusive, using prior experience and the knowledge we now possess regarding a set of fairly well-delineated risk factors.

Orthotopic liver transplantation for primary biliary cirrhosis and primary sclerosing cholangitis is a well-accepted therapy for complications of end-stage liver disease and is associated with an excellent outcome in the majority of cases. However, transplant centers are striving to improve on these outcomes by studying ways to optimize the timing of transplantation. Several natural history and prognostic models for both primary biliary cirrhosis and primary sclerosing cholangitis have been derived from the study of large populations of patients in an attempt to predict long-term rates of survival. In addition, models exist to predict resource utilization after liver transplantation. Other factors besides complications of end-stage liver disease may also be indications for transplantation, including refractory pruritus, recurrent bacterial cholangitis in patients with primary sclerosing cholangitis, hepatic osteodystrophy, and a poor quality of life.