Revisited impact of recipient age on the outcome of living donor liver transplantation for biliary atresia in the recent "transplantation era" in Japan.

To re-evaluate the impact of recipient age on the outcome of LDLT for BA in an era in which LDLT is the established treatment for BA in Japan. Thirty-one patients with BA who underwent LDLT were divided into four groups regarding the age at LDLT: infants <1 yr old (group A; n = 14); young children 1 to 6 yr old (group B; n = 8); school children 6 to 15 yr old (group B; n = 5); and adults > or =15 yr old (group D; n = 4). Pre-, peri-, and postoperative factors were compared among the four groups. There was no significant difference in number of the previous laparotomy among the groups. Cholestasis was the dominant indication in group A. PELD score in group B was lower than that in the other groups, and blood loss in group B was significantly less than in groups A and D. Ratio of the graft weight to the recipient's body weight (GRWR) in group A was significantly higher than in other groups. Duration of operation in group D was lower than in groups A and B, but there was no significant difference in the length of postoperative hospital stay and graft survival. Although the case volume was not big, the age of the recipient did not have any significant impact on the outcome of LDLT in our series.