Objective: Liver transplantation (LT) is a major surgery associated with intraoperative massive fluid shift, which is usually replaced by crystalloid, 5% albumin (colloid) and blood products. We studied 15 patients from 477 consecutive recipients of adult living donor liver transplantation. Each patient received crystalloid only during LT. Whether LT provides any clinical benefit is not clear and must be determined.
Methods and patients: The anesthesia records of 477 adult LDLT were reviewed retrospectively. The patients were divided into three groups according to the fluids received. Group I (GI) had received blood products, 5% albumin and crystalloid, group II (GII) received 5% albumin and crystalloid, and group III (GIII) received crystalloid only. The characteristic intraoperative variable and postoperative acute rejection and survival rate were compared amongst groups by using One Way ANOVA post hoc with Bonferroni and by Ficher's Exact test and Chi-square χ² test.
Results and conclusions: GIII had less intraoperative ascites and blood loss; they also had more stable hemodynamics. Furthermore, they could be extubated significantly earlier than GI, and the one- and three-year survival rates were excellent, with 100% in GIII, while that of GI and GII were 94.1%, 90.5% and 98.6%, 94.5%, respectively.
Keywords: 5% albumin; anesthesia; blood product; crystalloids; living donor liver transplantation.