Characteristics of liver grafts in living-donor adult liver transplantation: comparison between right- and left-lobe grafts.

HYPOTHESIS Few studies have investigated the results of research focused on living-donor adult liver transplantation. Different characteristics between right- and left-lobe grafts have not yet been clarified in living-donor adult liver transplantation. Left-lobe graft remains an important option, even in adult recipients. SETTING A single liver transplantation center with a long history of hepatic resection. PATIENTS Forty-five donors received left-lobe (n = 39) and right-lobe (n = 6) grafts. The clinicopathological data for the donor, graft, and recipient were compared. All left-lobe grafts were extended grafts that included the middle hepatic vein, and 24 of the 39 left-lobe grafts included the left caudate lobe. No right-lobe graft included a middle hepatic vein. RESULTS The postoperative aspartate aminotransferase and total bilirubin values of the donor in the right-lobe graft group were higher, and the postoperative hospital stay was longer than in the left-lobe graft group. Graft weight in the left-lobe graft group was lighter than in the right-lobe graft group (median weight, 450 vs 675 g). The median graft weight divided by the standard liver volume in the left-lobe graft group was 41% (range, 21%-66%), compared with 52% (range, 47%-75%) in the right-lobe graft group. We found no difference in terms of the incidence of postoperative complications between groups. No difference in induced complications of small-for-size grafts such as intractable ascites and persistent hyperbilirubinemia was evident between groups. The survival rate for grafts at 18 months was 75.0% in the right-lobe graft group compared with 85.6% in the left-lobe group. In the right-lobe graft group, we found a few cases in which a marked poor-perfusion area in the anterior segment caused liver dysfunction. CONCLUSIONS Left-lobe grafts are a feasible option for living-donor adult liver transplantation, and in the case of right-lobe grafts, hepatic venous drainage is one of the most critical problems.