Portal vein arterialization in 25 liver transplant recipients: A Latin American single-center experience

BACKGROUND Portal vein arterialization (PVA) has been used in liver transplantation (LT) to maximize oxygen delivery when arterial circulation is compromised or has been used as an alternative reperfusion technique for complex portal vein thrombosis (PVT). The effect of PVA on portal perfusion and primary graft dysfunction (PGD) has not been assessed. AIM To examine the outcomes of patients who required PVA in correlation with their LT procedure. METHODS All patients receiving PVA and LT at the Fundacion Santa Fe de Bogota between 2011 and 2022 were analyzed. To account for the time-sensitive effects of graft perfusion, patients were classified into two groups: prereperfusion (pre-PVA), if the arterioportal anastomosis was performed before graft revascularization, and postreperfusion (post-PVA), if PVA was performed afterward. The pre-PVA rationale contemplated poor portal hemodynamics, severe vascular steal, or PVT. Post-PVA was considered if graft hypoperfusion became evident. Conservative interventions were attempted before PVA. RESULTS A total of 25 cases were identified: 15 before and 10 after graft reperfusion. Pre-PVA patients were more affected by diabetes, decompensated cirrhosis, impaired portal vein (PV) hemodynamics, and PVT. PGD was less common after pre-PVA (20.0% vs 60.0%) (P = 0.041). Those who developed PGD had a smaller increase in PV velocity (25.00 cm/s vs 73.42 cm/s) (P = 0.036) and flow (1.31 L/min vs 3.34 L/min) (P = 0.136) after arterialization. Nine patients required PVA closure (median time: 62 d). Pre-PVA and non-PGD cases had better survival rates than their counterparts (56.09 months vs 22.77 months and 54.15 months vs 31.91 months, respectively). CONCLUSION This is the largest report presenting PVA in LT. Results suggest that pre-PVA provides better graft perfusion than post-PVA. Graft hyperperfusion could play a protective role against PGD.