Orthotopic partial hepatic transplantation in dogs.

Abstract

Based on the simple anatomy that the venous blood from the left half of the liver is drained by the single left hepatic vein in the dog, the left half of the donor liver was transplanted orthotopically in the space after left hepatic lobectomy of the recipient. Since this technique does not require complete occlusion of either the caval vein or the portal vein, external shunts are unnecessary. Furthermore there is no anhepatic phase during the transplantation procedure and consequently the surgical invasion to the recipient is minimal. Partial liver transplantation using the technique described has thus many advantages. Of the animals transplanted one survived 39 days after the orthotopic partial hepatic transplantation with 70 per cent hepatectomy of the recipient, and the other survived 10 days after total hepatectomy.