Transplantation for alcoholic liver disease: lessons from the explant?
- Scottish Liver Transplant Unit, Royal Infirmary of Edinburgh, Edinburgh, UK
- Correspondence to:
Professor P Hayes;
p.hayes{at}ed.ac.uk
Outcome of liver transplantation for patients with end stage alcoholic cirrhosis is not different from those with superimposed alcoholic hepatitis
Orthotopic liver transplantation for alcoholic cirrhosis is now well established, with good outcome in terms of patient and graft survival. Transplantation for alcoholic hepatitis however is not a recognised indication in the UK.1 All centres in the UK require a period of abstinence before listing for transplantation, although not all have input from psychiatrists experienced in alcohol dependence.2
Background: End stage alcoholic liver disease (ALD) is a common indication for liver transplantation but alcoholic hepatitis (AH) is often regarded as a contraindication. There is little evidence to support this belief.
Objective: To study the effect of superimposed AH on the outcome of liver transplantation for end stage ALD.
Design: Case series of consecutive patients undergoing liver transplantation over a five year period at one centre, followed for a median of 30 months.
Patients: A total of 169 cases, 68 cases were due to ALD (all abstinent for at …
