Living Donor Liver Transplantation Using a Liver Graft With Congenital Intrahepatic Portosystemic Shunt

Transplant Direct. 2015 Dec 10;2(1):e46. doi: 10.1097/TXD.0000000000000562. eCollection 2016 Jan.

Abstract

Despite of recent development of imaging modalities, congenital intrahepatic portosystemic shunt (IPSS) is rarely diagnosed. Therefore, living donor liver transplantation using a liver graft with IPSS has not been previously published.

Materials and methods: We report a 28-year-old male patient with end-stage liver disease secondary to Wilson disease. His 26-year-old brother was a potential living donor, who had an IPSS of 25 mm in diameter at segment 6 as shown by computed tomography. Liver function tests were normal, and blood ammonia concentration was in the upper limit of normal.

Results: Living donor liver transplantation was uneventfully performed. After surgery, a recipient liver function tests showed a quick recovery, and serum ammonia levels were consistently normal. Although thrombosis inside the IPSS was confirmed by computed tomography on postoperative day 21, this thrombosis disappeared at 3 months posttransplant with anticoagulants. Currently (12 months posttransplant), the patient has fully recovered, and the IPSS is still the same size.

Conclusions: Based on our experience, liver allografts with IPSS can be accepted as potential liver allografts.