Acute on Chronic Liver Failure: Factors Associated With Transplantation

Acute on chronic liver failure (ACLF) carries a poor prognosis unless liver transplantation is offered. We present risk factors associated with proceeding with liver transplantation in patients with ACLF.

A retrospective review of all patients with ACLF who presented to a single transplant center between January 2016 and December 2017 was performed. We compared patients who were transplanted with patients who were not.

During the study period, 144 patients with ACLF were identified, 86 patients (59.7%) were transplanted, and 58 were not. The transplanted patients had a lower number of failed organs (4 versus 5, P < 0.001) and lower incidence of ACLF grade 3 (76.7% versus 94.8%, P = 0.014) compared with nontransplanted patients. Liver transplantation offered a 1-y survival of 86% as compared to 12% in the nontransplanted group. Hospital charges were significantly higher among transplanted patients as compared with the nontransplanted patients ($227 886 versus $88 900, P < 0.001). Elevated serum lactate was a risk factor in not offering liver transplantation in ACLF patients.

In appropriately selected patients with ACLF, liver transplantation is feasible and can provide above 86% 1-y patient survival even in grade 3 ACLF.