Experts examine challenges of split liver trans...(and has been associated with good outcom...),Health

They suggest a new technique utilizing two left liver sections from two cadaveric donors, or the combination of a cadaveric left liver with one from a living donor as a way to help more patients in need of a transplant. "This would require significant infrastructure, logistical and organizational change," they say, but believe it could increase the number of transplants by 15 to 20 percent in the U.K.

In an editorial, Cristiano Quintini and colleagues at the Cleveland Clinic, contribute their experience with eight SLTs with two adult recipients. By combining technical refinements with an extensive learning curve, they were able to minimize graft failure and avoid patient death. "We continue to believe that adult/adult split liver transplantation is a viable option in highly selected situations," they report, while noting the promise in the dual graft technique suggested by Heaton, in spite of its practical difficulties.

"We look forward to a time when both SLT and living donation, separately or in tandem, have transitioned from an 'embryonic' phase into a routine and effective way of reducing the organ shortage," they conclude.

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