[Effects of the HLA antibodies on allograft acute rejection after cadaveric liver transplantation].

Objective: To evaluate the effect of perioperative HLA antibody changes on acute allograft rejection in cadaveric liver transplantation.

Methods: Totally 134 patients received modified piggyback liver transplantation and enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay was performed for HLA antibody detection before and the 1, 7, 14 and 30 days after operation. B ultrasound-guided liver biopsy was employed for diagnosis of acute allograft rejection, and the perioperative changes of HLA antibodies were evaluated for their effect on allograft acute rejection.

Results: Of the 44 recipients with preoperative positivity for HLA antibodies, acute rejection occurred in 56.8% of the patients, as compared with 25.9% in those negative for HLA antibody (P=0.001). The patients who became positive for HLA antibody postoperatively had a rate of acute rejection of 60%, which was significantly higher than that in those persistently negative for HLA antibody (18.6%, P=0.003).

Conclusion: HLA antibody positivity before transplantation may contribute to acute rejection episode in liver transplantation, and persistent posttransplant HLA antibody positivity is closely associated with the occurrence of acute rejection.