Pregnancy after living-related liver transplantation associated with severe preeclampsia and a review of the literature

Abstract

Pregnancies after orthotropic liver transplantation (OLT) have demonstrated favorable perinatal outcomes. However, obstetrical complications in OLT recipients are more common than those in a normal population. In countries where the number of cadaveric donors is limited, living-related liver transplantation (LRLT) is a valuable procedure, but few pregnancies after LRLT have been reported. We present a case of a pregnant woman after LRLT who developed severe preeclampsia with fetal growth restriction (FGR), and a review of literature. A 34-year-old nulliparous woman was referred to our hospital as a LRLT recipient. She was admitted to our hospital at 25 weeks' gestational age as she had developed severe preeclampsia, although her liver function was stable and there were no episodes for rejection or cholestasis. Emergency cesarean section was performed at 28 weeks' gestational age because of FGR and non-reassuring fetal status. Although there is no Medline available report in English of a successful pregnancy after LRLT, there are 11 cases of successful pregnancies after LRLT in the Japanese literature. These cases suggested that the incidences of preeclampsia, FGR, preterm delivery and cesarean delivery in pregnancies after LRLT are similar to those after OLT, but liver dysfunction and/or cholestasis in pregnancies after LRTL might be more common compared with those after OLT. Careful observation is needed after LRLT and the potential for differences in risk with LRLT recipients in comparison to OLT recipients should be considered.