[liver portion transplantation from living donor: pilot clinical experience]

The unique in Russia experience of 35 liver transplantations since 1990 has revealed benefits of the method and quite encouraging results with 81% survival of the recipients. But the extreme shortage of cadaveric donor organs followed by more than 60 per cent mortality in waiting list and absence of any real facilities to improve the situation dictate the living related donation to become a considerable alternative. Totally 12 living related liver transplant procedures were performed with no morbidity in donors. In 7 donors the routine surgical technique of harvesting were used to get left lateral segment in five and whole left lobe in two cases. The unique twin-to-twin liver left lobe donation with no consequent immunosuppression was observed in this series. New special technique of living donor surgery was successfully developed for liver right lobe harvesting. The living related liver right lobe replacement was used in 5 cases and appeared to become a real compensation of donor organs shortage for elder children with body weight more than 20 kg and adults.