title: Unusually rapid development of a HBsAG-positive liver cirrhosis after liver transplantation.
abstract: We report the case of a 44-year-old man who was transplanted in 1986 for hepatocellular carcinoma in a HBsAG-positive liver cirrhosis. The patient had no severe complications postoperatively. He received passive immunization for the prevention of hepatitis B reinfection during the first 6 months after liver grafting. Twelve months after the transplantation the new liver was reinfected with hepatitis B virus. Without any clinical or laboratory signs of severe hepatitis, the patient developed a histologically proven complete liver cirrhosis within 8 months after reinfection of the graft. The reasons for this might have been, first, a deleterious course of the infection under immunosuppressive therapy, and, second, the additional influence of a postoperatively acquired CMV infection or the combined toxic influence of cyclosporin A and its metabolites on the acute inflammation in the liver.
authors.affiliation: Abteilung Gastroenterologie u. Hepatologie, Medizinische Hochschule Hannover.
authors.forename: H U
authors.initials: HU
authors.lastname: Lautz
authors.forename: R
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Müller
authors.forename: C
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Wittekind
authors.forename: S
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Mauz
authors.forename: H
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Barg-Hock
authors.forename: B
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Ringe
authors.forename: R
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Pichlmayr
authors.forename: F W
authors.initials: FW
authors.lastname: Schmidt
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D006528:Carcinoma, Hepatocellular / Q000601:surgery*; D005500:Follow-Up Studies; D006509:Hepatitis B / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000601:surgery; D006514:Hepatitis B Surface Antigens / Q000032:analysis*; D006513:Hepatitis B e Antigens / Q000032:analysis; D006801:Humans; D008103:Liver Cirrhosis / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000601:surgery; D008111:Liver Function Tests; D008113:Liver Neoplasms / Q000601:surgery*; D016031:Liver Transplantation; D008297:Male; D011183:Postoperative Complications / Q000175:diagnosis*; D012008:Recurrence
chemical_list: D006514:Hepatitis B Surface Antigens; D006513:Hepatitis B e Antigens