Concomitant diverticulosis among patients undergoing liver transplantation. Does it influence the length of hospitalization after the procedure?

Aim Of The Study: We tried to assess the influence of concomitant diverticulosis and other factors, e.g., Child-Pugh (C-P) and MELD scores, viral etiology, and presence of alcoholic disease, on short-term results of liver transplantation (LT) with an emphasis on duration of patient's hospitalization.

Material And Methods: This prospective study was performed on 206 cirrhotic patients who were selected for LT. In order to assess the presence of diverticculosis we performed colonoscopy.

Results: The duration of hospitalization after LT did not differ significantly between patients with and without diverticulosis (27.5 [21.0-33.5] vs. 24.0 [18.0-32.0] days, = 0.28). Patients with C-P class C were hospitalized longer in comparison to the class B patients. It is reflected in the positive correlation between C-P score and days of hospitalization ( = 0.22, = 0.002). Patients with diverticulosis were significantly older (59.6 [51.1-63.3] vs. 52.9 [43.8-59.2] years, = 0.03). Alcoholic liver disease (ALD) was associated with a greater risk of diverticulosis (OR = 3.89, 95% CI [1.13-15.87], = 0.04).

Conclusions: Presence of diverticulosis among subjects undergoing LT did not influence the duration of hospitalization after the procedure. Significantly longer hospitalization was observed in patients with the most advanced liver disease according to C-P score. To determine the exact impact of diverticulosis on short-term results of LT additional studies are required.