You cannot be a liver donor if you: Are under age 18 or over age 60. Suffer from heart disease or lung disease. Have an incompatible blood type.
You may be disqualified from having a liver transplant if you have: Current alcohol or drug abuse problems. Uncontrolled infection that will not go away with a transplant. Metastatic cancer or bile duct cancer.
But finding a living donor may be difficult. Living liver donors go through extensive evaluation to ensure they are a match with the organ recipient and to assess their physical and mental health. The surgery also carries significant risks for the donor.
Some centers require that your blood type be a match with the recipient. For example, these types make good matches: Type O. If you have this type, you can donate to people who have type A, AB, B, or O.
Livers from female donors yielded significantly poorer results, with 2-year graft survival of female to male 55% (95% CI, 45% to 67%); female to female, 64% (95% CI, 54% to 77%); male to male, 72% (95% CI, 66% to 78%); and male to female, 78% (95% CI, 70% to 88%).
Living donation is possible because the liver is the only organ that can regenerate itself. An adult may be able to donate a portion of their liver to a child or another adult.
DONOR AND RECIPIENT AGE AND GENDER: IMPACT ON OUTCOMES OF LIVER TRANSPLANTATION. A recent study confirmed that recipients of gender-mismatched grafts had an 11% higher risk of graft loss.
Many living liver donors return to work on a part-time basis as early as four to six weeks after surgery. Heavy lifting or strenuous physical activity is restricted for six weeks and until the donor is cleared to do so. Returning to full-time work may take up to two months, depending on the nature of the donor's work.
Donors must have a compatible blood type and liver anatomy that is suitable for donation. Potential liver donors must not have any serious medical conditions, such as liver disease, diabetes, heart disease or cancer. To become a live liver donor, you must: Be a willing adult between age 18 and 60.
If you have Type O blood, you are a "universal donor" and can donate to anyone (although Type O liver recipients can only get organs from people who are also Type O). If you are Type A, you can donate to those who are also Type A as well as Type AB. Type B blood types can donate to other Type Bs and to Type ABs.
Even though live liver donation is considered a very safe operation, it involves major surgery and is associated with complications, which may include: Possible allergic reaction to anesthesia. Pain and discomfort.
Unfortunately, you will have significant pain after surgery. We will give you pain medication but you will still be very uncomfortable for at least the first week. You will have less pain as each day goes by, but most of our donors have a significant amount of discomfort for two to four weeks after surgery.
Although mortality has traditionally been estimated at 1 in 250 for living donation, a more recent survey found a 1 in 1,000 chance of death among liver donors at experienced centers, and a morbidity rate of approximately 30%.
People needing liver or heart transplants often need to wait nine or more months. Recipients are assessed for compatibility to the donor (not just blood type, but for six different tissue antigen subtypes as well as general body size – e.g. putting an adult heart into a small child is not possible).
It happens when your immune system recognises the liver as coming from a different person and thinks it isn't supposed to be there. Rejection can still occur even if you're taking all of your medicines. If you don't take your medicines as prescribed, the risks of rejection are higher.
Some people may not be suitable for a liver transplant. Some reasons a person may not qualify include: They have other untreatable conditions affecting other organs, such as cancer or severe coronary artery disease.
You cannot drink alcohol for a full year after surgery to allow your liver to recover. You will also be required to visit the hospital and lab repeatedly. You will gradually be able to return to your normal activities as you recover.
One-year graft survival was 73.1% (donor ≥65–69) and 62.5% (donor ≥ 70), while multivariate analysis revealed superior one-year graft survival to be associated with a donor age of ≥65–69.
A transplanted liver may be more sensitive to damage by chemicals, including alcohol. The transplantation team recommends that recipients avoid overuse of alcoholic beverages after transplantation.
Most patients are hospitalized for seven to 10 days after liver transplant. Afterward, they generally recuperate at home and typically return to work or school after about three months.
You can often drive again around 12 weeks after a liver transplant. It's important not to start driving too soon as you could risk damaging your surgical wound.
The waiting period for a deceased donor transplant can range from less than 30 days to more than 5 years. How long you will wait depends on how badly you need a new liver.
Graft failure
It's one of the most serious complications of a liver transplant and occurs in around 1 in every 10 people. The most common cause is a disruption to the blood supply to the transplanted liver, caused by blood clots (thrombosis). Graft failure can develop suddenly, or slowly over a longer period of time.
Main complications of a liver transplant: It is a major operation and comes with surgical risks, like bleeding. Infections and bile duct complications are common after a liver transplant. You will need to take strong medicines to suppress your immune system.
What does the operation involve? During the procedure, a portion of the donor's liver (as much as 60 percent) is removed, leaving the “plumbing” like bile ducts and blood vessels, intact. Over a period of about 6 weeks, both the donor's and recipient's livers will regenerate, growing to their normal size.