[Pancreas transplantation and venous thrombosis: multivariate analysis of risk factors]

Portal veinous thrombosis (VT) in the pancreatic transplant (6 to 20% of the cases) is the first cause of early loss of the transplant. Our objective was to identify the risk factors of VT in our experiment.

The sample group includes 106 patients who underwent pancreas transplantation (portal venous drainage, enteric-drained pancreas) within our institute of transplantation from 2004 until 2010. We completed a portal vein extension graft in 25% of the cases. First of all, risk factors were selected from preoperative and operative data with an univariate analysis. We then carried out a multivariate analysis of these factors (binary logistic regression). The threshold P was 0.05.

Sixteen patients (15%) showed a VT. Eight of them developed a total thrombosis and required a transplantectomy. Three risk factors of VT were isolated by the multivariate analysis: a BMI of the receiver>25kg/m(2) (Odds Ratio [OR]=6.977), a portal vein extension graft (OR=4.1) and an age of the donor>45 years (OR=4.432).

The knowledge of these risk factors of thrombosis allows the implementation of preventive measures (selection of the donor, nutritional support of the receiver in the registration if BMI>25kg/m(2)). The portal lengthening should be avoided by an attentive retrieval of the transplant (without shorter section of the portal vein). Nevertheless, the presence of one of these risk factors in a transplant patient should lead to start an antithrombotic treatment.