Pediatric liver transplantation: comparison between results from deceased and living related transplantation

Timely access to a living donor has reduced pretransplant mortality in pediatric liver transplantation. We hypothesized that this strategy may provide better posttransplant outcomes, due to shorter waiting times on the transplant list. A extensive search in the medical literature from the last 10 years showed clear evidence of the benefits of living donors, namely, decreased dropout rates as well as the chance to transplant the patients in better clinical situation. However, a negative impact was related to the higher morbidity rates when compared to whole grafts from deceased donors.