Hepatic Artery Thrombosis After Orthotopic Liver Transplant: Experience in the Last 10 Years

Abstract

Hepatic artery thrombosis (HAT) is the second cause of graft failure, after primary disfunction. It has a significant morbidity, with a retransplant and mortality rate in early hepatic artery thrombosis of 50%. The incidence of this event goes from 2% to 9% in the adult population. The objective is to assess the incidence of HAT in a third-level hospital. The study design is an observational retrospective study, collecting data of the transplant recipient from 2010 to 2020. Incidence of HAT was 5.33% (39/732). A statistical difference was found with the blood intraoperative administration (P=.002) and with the presence of anatomic abnormalities in the hepatic artery between the HAT and the non-HAT group. We did not find any statistical difference with portal thrombosis (P=.73) between the groups. HAT is a fatal complication after an orthotopic liver transplant, which can lead to graft loss and even recipient death. For these reasons, we should early identify risk factors associated with this event early and try to minimize them to avoid the devastating consequences.