title: Infections after living-donor liver transplantation.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Despite greater awareness of organ donation among the general public, the supply of cadaveric organs has fallen short of identified needs. Living-donor liver transplantation (LDLT) is an effective means of overcoming the shortage of adult organs, as outcomes are now comparable to those of cadaveric donor liver transplantation.
  
  
  METHODS
  From January, 2002 through January, 2006, 40 LDLTs were performed at our center. With two exceptions, the donor was a first-degree relative of the recipient; all donors were in excellent health with good hepatic function and morphology. All but two donors contributed the right lobe. Infections in the donors and recipients were analyzed.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Clinically relevant infections occurred in three donors. In the recipients, the infections did not differ significantly from those experienced by recipients of cadaveric organs in terms of risk factors (e.g., poor graft function, re-transplantation, surgical complications such as bile duct stenosis, or vascular anastomotic stenosis) or type of infection. Cholangitis was the most frequent infection, leading to septic shock in five of the 14 patients with infections; intra-abdominal infections related to surgical complications led to septic shock in three additional patients. The other most commonly observed infections were urinary tract infections (n=10) and pneumonia (n=3).
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Living-donor liver transplantation offers hope to patients with end-stage liver disease in geographic areas where the waiting time mortality is high and available organs from deceased donors fall short of the population's need.
authors.affiliation: ISMETT/U.P.M.C. Italy, Palermo, Italy. bgridelli@ismett.edu
authors.forename: Bruno
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Gridelli
authors.forename: Giovanna
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Panarello
authors.forename: Salvatore
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Gruttadauria
authors.forename: Amadeo
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Marcos
authors.forename: Paolo
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Grossi
mesh_terms: D018784:Abdominal Abscess / Q000453:epidemiology; D002761:Cholangitis / Q000453:epidemiology; D006801:Humans; D007239:Infections / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000209:etiology*; D016031:Liver Transplantation / Q000009:adverse effects*; D019520:Living Donors; D011014:Pneumonia / Q000453:epidemiology; D014552:Urinary Tract Infections / Q000453:epidemiology