title: Liver transplantation for severe hepatic trauma: experience from a single center.
abstract: Liver transplantation has been reported in the literature as an extreme intervention in cases of severe and complicated hepatic trauma. The main indications for liver transplant in such cases were uncontrollable bleeding and postoperative hepatic insufficiency. We here describe four cases of orthotopic liver transplantation after penetrating or blunt liver trauma. The indications were liver failure, extended liver necrosis, liver gangrene and multiple episodes of gastrointestinal bleeding related to portal hypertension, respectively. One patient died due to postoperative cerebral edema. The other three patients recovered well and remain on immunosuppression. Liver transplantation should be considered as a saving procedure in severe hepatic trauma, when all other treatment modalities fail.
authors.affiliation: Department of Surgery, Division of Transplantation, University of Miami Miller School of Medicine, Miami, FL 33101, USA. sdelis55@hotmail.com
authors.forename: Spiros G
authors.initials: SG
authors.lastname: Delis
authors.forename: Andreas
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Bakoyiannis
authors.forename: Gennaro
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Selvaggi
authors.forename: Debbie
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Weppler
authors.forename: David
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Levi
authors.forename: Andreas G
authors.initials: AG
authors.lastname: Tzakis