Postoperative effects of intraoperative hyperglycemia in liver transplant patients

The aim of this study was to determine the effects of intraoperative hyperglycemia on postoperative outcomes in orthotopic liver transplant recipients.

After ethics committee approval was obtained, we retrospectively analyzed the records of patients who underwent orthotopic liver transplant from January 2000 to December 2013. A total 389 orthotopic liver transplants were performed in our center, but patients aged < 15 years (179 patients) were not included in the analyses. Patients were divided into 2 groups based on their maximum intraoperative blood glucose level: group 1 (patients with intraoperative blood glucose level < 200 mg/dL) and group 2 (patients with intraoperative blood glucose level > 200 mg/dL). Postoperative complications between the 2 groups were compared.

There were 58 patients (37.6%; group 1, blood glucose < 200 mg/dL) who had controlled blood glucose and 96 patients (62.3%; group 2, blood glucose > 200 mg/dL) who had uncontrolled blood glucose. The mean age and weight for groups 1 and 2 were similar. There were no differences between the 2 groups regarding the duration of anhepatic phase (P = .20), operation time (P = .41), frequency of immediate intraoperative extubation (P = .14), and postoperative duration of mechanical ventilation (P = .06). There were no significant differences in frequency of patients who had postoperative infectious complications, acute kidney injury, or need for hemodialysis. Mortality rates after liver transplant were similar between the 2 groups (P = .81).

Intraoperative hyperglycemia during orthotopic liver transplant was not associated with an increased risk of postoperative infection, acute renal failure, or mortality.