Treatment introduction
Various liver disease treatments:
Children: biliary atresia, neonatal hepatitis, choledochal cyst,
congenital metabolic disorders, polycystic liver disease, liver
abscess, liver cancer, acute liver failure, and Budd-Chiari
syndrome.
Adult: viral hepatitis and cirrhosis, liver cancer, acute liver
failure, alcoholic cirrhosis, intrahepatic stones, Budd-Chiari
syndrome, portal hypertension, liver abscess.
Living donor liver transplantation (LDLT) involves taking part of
the liver of a healthy relative and transplanting it to patients
with end-stage liver disease. Unlike the kidneys, the liver is only
a single organ and it entails complex surgical techniques with
meticulous dissection of the small blood vessels and bile ducts
to maximize function.
After continuous clinical trials and animal experiments, the first
living donor liver transplant in Taiwan was performed on June
17, 1994. Thereafter, LDLT brought new hope for patients with
liver disease. Due to limited organ donation in Taiwan, many
patients pass away while waiting for an organ transplant. With
LDLT, the patients can obtain a liver anytime from a willing and
suitable relative.
Living donor liver transplantation has the following benefits:
(1) It can be carried out under the most suitable timing and
conditions between the donor and recipient.
(2) The liver graft has a high level of freshness and better
function.
(3) Lower incidence of transplant rejection.
(4) The liver volume, vascular and bile duct anatomy, etc. can be
accurately calculated and matched before surgery.
Kaohsiung Chang Gung Memorial Hospital has developed a
number of innovative techniques and strategies for living donor
liver transplantation and has achieved excellent results. These
include saphenous vein graft angioplasty, hepatic vein
angioplasty, prevention of hepatitis B virus transmission,
innovative technology in treating portal vein thrombosis, and
microsurgical vascular and biliary reconstruction. As the highest
in the world, the five-year survival rate of 100 pediatric
patients receiving living donor liver transplantation was 98% for
biliary atresia (Am J Transplant, 2006); For patients with liver
cancer that surpasses Milan Criteria for liver transplantation,
they receive local treatment first followed by living donor liver
transplantation to achieve a five-year survival rate of 90%
(Transplantation, 2008).