title: Long term follow-up and outcome of liver transplantation from hepatitis B surface antigen positive donors.
abstract: Liver transplant for hepatitis B virus (HBV) currently yields excellent outcomes: it allows to rescue patients with an HBV-related advanced liver disease, resulting in a demographical modification of the waiting list for liver transplant. In an age of patient-tailored treatments, in liver transplantation as well the aim is to offer the best suitable graft to the patient who can benefit from it, also expanding the criteria for organ acceptance and allocation. With the intent of developing strategies to increase the donor pool, we set-up a multicenter study involving 3 Liver Transplant Centers in Italy: patients undergoing liver transplantation between March 03, 2004, and May 21, 2010, were retrospectively evaluated. 1408 patients underwent liver transplantation during the study period, 28 (2%) received the graft from hepatitis B surface antigen positive (HBsAg)-positive deceased donors. The average follow-up after liver transplantation was 63.7 mo [range: 0.1-119.4; SD ± 35.8]. None Primary non-function, re-liver transplantation, early or late hepatic artery thrombosis occurred. The 1-, 3- and 5-year graft and patient survival resulted of 85.7%, 82.1%, 78.4%. Our results suggest that the use of HBsAg-positive donors liver grafts is feasible, since HBV can be controlled without affecting graft stability. However, the selection of grafts and the postoperative antiviral therapy should be managed appropriately.
authors.affiliation: Roberto Ballarin, Paolo Magistri, Fabrizio Di Benedetto, Hepatopancreatobiliary Surgery and Liver Transplant Unit, University Hospital "Policlinico", University of Modena and Reggio Emilia, 41124 Modena, Italy.
authors.forename: Roberto
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Ballarin
authors.affiliation: Roberto Ballarin, Paolo Magistri, Fabrizio Di Benedetto, Hepatopancreatobiliary Surgery and Liver Transplant Unit, University Hospital "Policlinico", University of Modena and Reggio Emilia, 41124 Modena, Italy.
authors.forename: Alessandro
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Cucchetti
authors.affiliation: Roberto Ballarin, Paolo Magistri, Fabrizio Di Benedetto, Hepatopancreatobiliary Surgery and Liver Transplant Unit, University Hospital "Policlinico", University of Modena and Reggio Emilia, 41124 Modena, Italy.
authors.forename: Francesco Paolo
authors.initials: FP
authors.lastname: Russo
authors.affiliation: Roberto Ballarin, Paolo Magistri, Fabrizio Di Benedetto, Hepatopancreatobiliary Surgery and Liver Transplant Unit, University Hospital "Policlinico", University of Modena and Reggio Emilia, 41124 Modena, Italy.
authors.forename: Paolo
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Magistri
authors.affiliation: Roberto Ballarin, Paolo Magistri, Fabrizio Di Benedetto, Hepatopancreatobiliary Surgery and Liver Transplant Unit, University Hospital "Policlinico", University of Modena and Reggio Emilia, 41124 Modena, Italy.
authors.forename: Matteo
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Cescon
authors.affiliation: Roberto Ballarin, Paolo Magistri, Fabrizio Di Benedetto, Hepatopancreatobiliary Surgery and Liver Transplant Unit, University Hospital "Policlinico", University of Modena and Reggio Emilia, 41124 Modena, Italy.
authors.forename: Umberto
authors.initials: U
authors.lastname: Cillo
authors.affiliation: Roberto Ballarin, Paolo Magistri, Fabrizio Di Benedetto, Hepatopancreatobiliary Surgery and Liver Transplant Unit, University Hospital "Policlinico", University of Modena and Reggio Emilia, 41124 Modena, Italy.
authors.forename: Patrizia
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Burra
authors.affiliation: Roberto Ballarin, Paolo Magistri, Fabrizio Di Benedetto, Hepatopancreatobiliary Surgery and Liver Transplant Unit, University Hospital "Policlinico", University of Modena and Reggio Emilia, 41124 Modena, Italy.
authors.forename: Antonio Daniele
authors.initials: AD
authors.lastname: Pinna
authors.affiliation: Roberto Ballarin, Paolo Magistri, Fabrizio Di Benedetto, Hepatopancreatobiliary Surgery and Liver Transplant Unit, University Hospital "Policlinico", University of Modena and Reggio Emilia, 41124 Modena, Italy.
authors.forename: Fabrizio
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Di Benedetto
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D058625:End Stage Liver Disease / Q000601:surgery*; D005260:Female; D005500:Follow-Up Studies; D005843:Geography; D006512:Hepatitis B Core Antigens / Q000097:blood; D006514:Hepatitis B Surface Antigens / Q000097:blood*; D006515:Hepatitis B virus; D019694:Hepatitis B, Chronic / Q000188:drug therapy*; D006801:Humans; D016031:Liver Transplantation; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D012189:Retrospective Studies; D014019:Tissue Donors / Q000145:classification*; D009927:Tissue and Organ Procurement; D016896:Treatment Outcome; D015337:Multicenter Studies as Topic
chemical_list: D006512:Hepatitis B Core Antigens; D006514:Hepatitis B Surface Antigens
keywords: Hepatitis B surface antigen; Hepatitis B virus; Hepatocellular carcinoma; Liver transplantation; Multicenter study; Organ allocation; Organ procurement