Notation System for Liver Transplant Recipients: Key Information in Transplant Procedure

Liver transplantation (LT) is a standard therapy for patients with end-stage liver disease and certain hepatic malignancies. The LT procedure has diversified due to donor shortages and advances in immunosuppressive treatments and surgical techniques. Donor organ shortages have promoted the use of living donor liver transplantation and "marginal" livers, including donation after circulatory death. ABO-incompatible liver transplants now show outcomes comparable with ABO-compatible transplants when a desensitization protocol is used. Hepaticojejunostomy, rather than duct-to-duct anastomosis, is performed in select cases with an unsuitable common bile duct or in patients with primary sclerosing cholangitis. These procedural differences affect follow-up management in LT recipients. Given the increasing diversity of transplant surgeries and the long-term prognosis after LT, it is essential for healthcare professionals and transplant societies to be informed about the specific procedures performed in LT recipients. We aimed to propose a notation system for LT recipients that documents key procedural information, including the number of transplantations, donor type with donor/recipient blood types in ABO-incompatible transplantation, graft type, the number of reconstructed vessels, and the number and type of biliary reconstruction. The use of a common notation system for transplant procedures can facilitate patient management, communication, and accurate understanding of transplant procedures.