Outcomes of liver transplantations from donation after circulatory death (DCD) treated by hypothermic oxygenated perfusion (HOPE) before implantation

Donation after circulatory death organs (DCD) are increasingly used for liver transplantation (LT), due to the persisting organ shortage and waiting list mortality[1]. Several reports, however, suggest inferior graft survival, increased risk for primary non-function (PNF), and biliary complications in DCD livers, with most concerns for an irreversible ischemic cholangiopathy (IC)[2]. Severe forms, requiring retransplantation, typically develop within the first 3 to 6 months after LT[3]. While the majority of transplant physicians agree, that prolonged periods of donor warm ischemia contribute significantly to this aggressive biliary complication, others argue that also factors including donor and recipient age, cold ischemia, donor body-mass-index (BMI) and hepatic steatosis, or technical issues are equally important[4,5].
Source: Journal of Hepatology - Category: Gastroenterology Authors: Source Type: research