The prediction of acute cellular rejection in orthotopic liver transplantation

The occurrence of acute cellular rejection after orthotopic liver transplantation is common. At present, no allowance is made in immunosuppressive regimens for parameters other than weight. We investigated parameters in 121 consecutive patients receiving their primary allograft to determine if there are pretransplantation factors predicting the occurrence of acute cellular rejection after transplantation. The case notes and dietetic notes of these patients were reviewed for age at transplantation, cause of liver disease, preoperative albumin and creatinine levels, lymphocyte count, anthropometric measurements, donor age, HLA DR mismatch, and cold ischemia time. Acute cellular rejection was more likely to occur in younger patients, patients with Child's class A disease, and those with normal midarm muscle circumference. Acute rejection was increased in transplant recipients from donors aged younger than 30 and older than 50 years. Acute cellular rejection was less likely to occur in patients who underwent transplantation for alcoholic liver disease. Chronic rejection was significantly increased in women and those patients who experienced recurrent acute rejection. On multivariate analysis, the only significant predictor was the decreased likelihood of acute rejection in patients with depleted midarm muscle circumference. In conclusion, it may be possible to individualize immunosuppressive regimens on the basis of pretransplantation characteristics.