The impact of metabolic syndrome and prevalent liver disease on living donor liver transplantation: a pressing need to expand the pool.

Background And Aims: Organ shortage has been the ongoing obstacle to expanding liver transplantation worldwide. Living donor liver transplantation (LDLT) is hoped to improve this shortage. The aim of the present study is to analyze the impact of metabolic syndrome and prevalent liver disease on living donations.

Liver transplantation for hepatitis B virus: Decreasing indication and changing trends.

Aim: To evaluate the indication and outcome of hepatitis B virus (HBV)-related liver transplantation (LT) in the era of newer antiviral agents.

Methods: We collected data on all patients who underwent transplantation at King Faisal Specialist Hospital and Research Center. These data included demographic, perioperative and long-term postoperative follow-up data including viral serological markers, HBV DNA, and repeated liver imaging.

Revising the upper limit of normal for levels of serum alanine aminotransferase in a Middle Eastern population with normal liver histology.

Background: Recently, the upper limits of normal (ULN) for alanine-aminotransferase (ALT) has been recommended to be lowered to ≤ 30 U/l in men and ≤ 19 U/l in women.

Aim: To evaluate the ALT concentrations in a healthy Middle Eastern population with biopsy-proven normal liver tissue.

Methods: ALT values were calculated from 175 consecutive Saudi potential living liver donors who underwent a liver biopsy as part of a stepwise pretransplant workup.

Day-of-surgery rejection of donors in living donor liver transplantation.

Aim: To study diagnostic laparoscopy as a tool for excluding donors on the day of surgery in living donor liver transplantation (LDLT).

Methods: This study analyzed prospectively collected data from all potential donors for LDLT. All of the donors were subjected to a three-step donor evaluation protocol at our institution.

De novo malignancies after liver transplantation: a single-center experience.

Background And Objectives: The recipients of liver transplantation (LT) are subjected to lifelong immunosuppression with its many drawbacks. De novo and recurrent malignancy in transplant recipients are attributed to attenuation of immunosurveillance. In the present study, we present our experience with de novo malignancies encountered after both deceased and living donor liver transplantations.

Treatment of genotype 4 hepatitis C recurring after liver transplantation using a combination of pegylated interferon alfa-2a and ribavirin.

Background: Hepatitis C virus (HCV) recurrence after liver transplantation (LT) is universal and tends to be more aggressive. Data on post-transplant HCV genotype 4 treatment is scarce. The aim of this study is to assess the safety and efficacy of pegylated interferon alpha-2a (PEG-IFN) in combination with ribavirin in the treatment of recurrent HCV genotype 4 after LT.

Recurrence of hepatitis C virus genotype-4 infection following orthotopic liver transplantation: natural history and predictors of outcome.

Background And Objectives: There are few reports on hepatitis C virus genotype 4 (HCV-4) recurrences after orthotopic liver transplantation (OLT). Therefore, we undertook a study to determine the epidemiological, clinical and virological characteristics of patients with biopsy-proven recurrent HCV infection and analyzed the factors that influence recurrent disease severity. We also compared disease recurrence and outcomes between HCV-4 and other genotypes.

Experience with 122 consecutive liver transplant procedures at King Faisal Specialist Hospital and Research Center.

Background: Saudi Arabia is a leading country in the Middle East in the field of deceased-donor liver transplantation (DDLT) and living-donor liver transplantation (LDLT). We present out experience with DDLT and LDLT at King Faisal Specialist Hospital and Research Center (KFSHRC) for the period from April 2001 to January 2007.

Patients And Methods: We performed 122 LT procedures (77 DDLTs and 45 LDLTs) in 118 patients (4 re-transplants) during this period of time.