Split liver transplantation in two recipients for urgent indications: an example and logistics of interregional cooperation

Abstract

Aim. To report a rare case of split liver transplantation in two urgent recipients treated in hospitals that are very far from each other. Material and methods. Partial liver grafts were obtained by controlled full-right/full-left in situ splitting. The left lobe was transplanted in a 7-year-old child with severe hepatic failure (PELD score 39) resulting, probably from an progressive intrahepatic familial cholestasis in Novosibirsk. The right lobe was used for re-transplantation in a 28-year-old patient with hepatic artery thrombosis (UNOS status 1A) after living donor right lobe liver transplantation in Moscow. Results. The course of the early post-operative period in recipient 1 was complicated by infected total pancreatonecrosis with the development of limited biliary leakage and the formation of a stricture, which required reconstructive cholangiojejunostomy 12 months after transplantation. Recipient 2 consistently underwent biliary leakage, arrosive arterial bleeding, graft artery thrombosis, all of which could become fatal. Complications were successfully eliminated by the consistent use of surgical and endovascular interventions. Conclusion. The presented observation is, firstly, an example of effective inter-center cooperation, and secondly, a demonstration of the existing problems of postmortem organ donation, which determine the need for such extreme surgery in critical situations.