title: Optimizing outcomes for pediatric recipients.
abstract: 1. After liver transplantation (LT), the majority of children now grow into adulthood, with 10-year patient survival rates of 74% to 84% and graft survival rates of 62% to 72% according to United Network for Organ Sharing data. 2. Graft and patient survival rates decrease for patients undergoing transplantation between the ages of 12 and 17 years, and this raises the importance of dedicated adolescent care and appropriate transitioning to adult services. 3. Complications associated with long-term immunosuppression, including renal complications, infections, malignancies, and cardiovascular complications, are well described, and the risk factors are defined. 4. Biomarkers for measuring clinical immunosuppression and the concept of tolerance-inducing regimens are exciting, but further assessment is needed in large, prospective, multicenter studies. 5. As long-term medical complications are better managed, we need to focus on understanding the challenges for pediatric LT patients with respect to quality of life and health status.
authors.affiliation: King’s College Hospital, Denmark Hill, London, United Kingdom. marianne.samyn@kingsch.nhs.uk
authors.forename: Marianne
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Samyn
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D002648:Child; D006085:Graft Survival / Q000276:immunology; D006304:Health Status; D006801:Humans; D008107:Liver Diseases / Q000601:surgery*; D016031:Liver Transplantation / Q000276:immunology; D011788:Quality of Life; D012307:Risk Factors; D014180:Transplantation; D016896:Treatment Outcome