Feasibility and Midterm Results of Endovascular Treatment of Hepatic Artery Occlusion within 24 Hours after Living-Donor Liver Transplantation.

PURPOSE: To evaluate the feasibility and midterm results of endovascular treatment of hepatic artery occlusion within 24 hours after living-donor liver transplantation (LDLT).

MATERIALS AND

METHODS

From January 2012 to June 2014, 189 consecutive patients at a single institution underwent LDLT with right-lobe grafts. Among them, 10 were diagnosed with hepatic artery occlusion within 24 hours after LDLT. All 10 underwent endovascular treatment, including drug-eluting stent placement (n = 2), intraarterial thrombolysis (n = 5), or both (n = 3). Every patient received regular follow-up with multidetector computed tomography (CT). Data on primary technical success, primary and assisted primary patency, and biliary complications were analyzed.

RESULTS

Primary technical success was achieved in all 10 cases. Primary patency rates at 1 week, 3 months, and 6 months were all 70% (7 of 10), and the respective assisted primary patency rates were all 80% (8 of 10). Bleeding at the anastomotic site developed in 2 failed cases, prompting repeat liver transplantation. All 8 successfully recanalized cases showed hepatic artery patency on CT throughout follow-up (mean, 643.6 d; range, 236-1,081 d). Six of these cases had anastomotic biliary stricture, 4 of which were successfully treated by multisession biliary intervention. One patient had nonanastomotic biliary stricture and died of hepatic failure despite lifelong external drainage.

CONCLUSIONS

Endovascular treatment could be an alternative therapeutic option for patients with hepatic artery occlusion within 24 hours after LDLT. It could help achieve long-term patency of the hepatic artery, but biliary stricture can potentially occur, and bleeding at the anastomotic site is a serious complication.