Intestinal transplantation in children: the first successful Italian series

Area of Science:

• Gastroenterology
• Pediatric Surgery
• Transplantation Medicine

Background:

• Chronic intestinal failure significantly impacts children's quality of life.
• Intestinal transplantation is a complex procedure for select pediatric patients.
• Establishing a dedicated pediatric intestinal transplant program is crucial.

Purpose of the Study:

• To present the initial outcomes of Italy's first pediatric intestinal transplantation program.
• To evaluate the feasibility and early results of intestinal and multivisceral transplantation in children.
• To assess patient and graft survival rates in this cohort.

Main Methods:

• A multidisciplinary team initiated the program.
• Nine pediatric patients with chronic intestinal failure were listed.
• Transplantation types included isolated intestinal, isolated liver, multivisceral, and combined liver/intestine.

Main Results:

• No in-hospital mortality was observed.
• All recipients were successfully weaned from parenteral nutrition.
• One-year actuarial survival for intestinal grafts was 100%, and 75% at two years.

Conclusions:

• The program demonstrated successful outcomes in pediatric intestinal transplantation.
• Early results indicate the viability of intestinal transplantation for chronic intestinal failure in children.
• Further long-term follow-up is warranted to confirm sustained graft and patient survival.