Back-table preparation of a donor liver prior to machine perfusion can be time-consuming and thus add to the overall cold ischemic time (CIT). In this prospective, observational cohort study, the authors assessed if CIT could be reduced by performing part of the back-table procedure under continuous, single-sided perfusion through the port vein (HOPE). A total of 10 initially declined livers were included in the study, and compared to 60 regular back-table DHOPE-NMP livers. With a utilization rate of 90%, the study shows that CIT can be reduced by at least 1 hour if a donor liver is prepared ‘on the pump’ (median CIT: 214 vs 279, p<0.01). The authors state that based on these results, they have now introduced back-table preparation under continuous HOPE as standard of care.
“/…/ performing the back-table preparation under continuous HOPE has been introduced as standard of care in our transplant center.”
Lantinga et al 2022
Clin Transplanti / 2022 / doi: 10.1111/ctr.14762
