Stroke volume response to liver graft reperfusion stress in cirrhotic patients.

Introduction: In patients with advanced cirrhosis, stressful stimuli may reveal a silent reduced cardiac performance. During liver transplantation (LT), graft reperfusion strongly stresses the heart and may unmask latent myocardial dysfunction.

Aim: The objective of this study was to assess heart response to acutely increased preload after liver graft reperfusion and correlate this response with preoperative data and outcome.