Liver Transplant After Severe Liver Trauma: The First Report in a Korean Adult

Exp Clin Transplant. 2023 Jul;21(7):619-622. doi: 10.6002/ect.2023.0144.

Abstract

Following a motor-vehicle accident, a 57-year-old man was diagnosed with a grade 4 liver injury (American Association for the Surgery of Trauma organ injury scale) with multiple contrast extravasations. He initially underwent nonoperative management, which included transcatheter arterial embolization. However, he experienced a hemorrhage after the first embo-lization procedure, and so the procedure was repeated. Thereafter, he was diagnosed with liver failure based on findings from computed tomography and liver function tests. On day 28 of hospitalization, the patient underwent deceased donor liver transplant. He experienced several complications, including acute renal failure, pneumonia, and bile leak. These were managed successfully, and the patient was discharged 4 months after the transplant. Although liver transplant procedure for hepatic trauma is technically challenging and risky, it should be considered a viable treatment option in some patients (such as patients with severe liver injury). This is the first reported case, to our knowledge, of a liver transplant performed successfully in a patient with severe hepatic trauma in Korea.

Publication types

  • Case Reports

MeSH terms

  • Adult
  • Embolization, Therapeutic* / methods
  • Humans
  • Liver / injuries
  • Liver Transplantation* / adverse effects
  • Living Donors
  • Male
  • Middle Aged
  • Republic of Korea
  • Wounds, Nonpenetrating*