[Cardiac Surgery for Patients with Liver Cirrhosis]

Liver cirrhosis is a major risk factor in patients requiring cardiac surgery. Although current evidence is limited to reports coming mostly from small case series, it is clear that the surgical risk increases with the severity of the liver disease. Hemodynamic instability caused by hyperdynamic circulation, systemic fluid retention, infection, and bleeding is frequently observed postoperatively in severely cirrhotic patients. Preoperative optimization, including correction of coagulopathy and poor nutrition, is therefore crucial for minimizing the predictive postoperative complications in those patients. Postoperative management should focus on bleeding and infection control, body fluid management, adequate nutrition, and hemodynamics, particularly hepatic circulation. Multiple studies have shown that patients who are diagnosed as Child-Pugh class B or C liver cirrhosis have a high surgical mortality rate, with most reports suggesting class C as inoperable. Recently, the model for end-stage liver disease( MELD) score has been gaining attention for its reliability in identifying patients at high risk for open heart surgery. Off-pump surgery may be beneficial in improving the surgical outcomes, but the evidence is weak and further studies are required. A thorough preoperative evaluation is thus mandatory in cirrhotic patients scheduled for cardiac surgery, with a particular attention to the risks and benefits of performing the surgery itself.