Liver Transplantation

Liver Transplant Specialist in Mumbai

What is Liver Transplantation?

Liver transplantation is a surgical procedure that removes the liver that is no longer functioning properly (liver failure) and replaces it with a healthy liver from a deceased donor or a part of a healthy liver from a living donor. Dr. Aditya J. Nanavati is a highly experienced and one of the Best Liver Transplant Specialist in Mumbai.

Liver is the largest internal organ and performs a number of key functions, including:

Processing nutrients, drugs, and hormones
Produce bile, helping the body absorb fat, cholesterol, and fat-soluble vitamins
Produces proteins that help blood clots
Cleares the body Bacteria and blood toxins
Prevents infection and regulate immune response

Liver transplantation is generally reserved as a treatment option for people with severe complications of end-stage chronic liver disease. In rare cases of sudden failure of a previously healthy liver, liver transplantation can also be used as a treatment option.

Living donor liver transplantation is possible because the human liver regenerates and returns to its normal size soon after some organs are surgically removed.

Why is Liver Transplantation Done?

Liver transplantation is a treatment plan that is suitable for patients with liver failure and certain liver cancer patients whose condition cannot be controlled by other treatments.

Liver failure can happen quickly or over a long period of time. Liver failure that occurs rapidly within a few weeks is called acute liver failure. Acute liver failure is a rare disease, usually the result of complications caused by certain drugs.

Although liver transplantation can treat acute liver failure, it is most commonly used to treat chronic liver failure.

Chronic liver failure can be caused by many diseases. Cirrhosis is the main cause of chronic liver failure. When cirrhosis occurs, scar tissue will replace normal liver tissue and cause liver dysfunction.

The main causes of liver cirrhosis in liver transplantation include:

Hepatitis B and C
Alcoholic liver disease, and liver damage caused by excessive drinking.
Fatty liver is non-alcoholic, a disease that accumulates fat in the liver and causes inflammation or damage to liver cells.
Genetic diseases affecting the liver include hemochromatosis, which causes excessive iron accumulation in the liver, and Wilson’s disease, which causes excessive copper accumulation in the liver.
Diseases that affect the bile ducts (tubes that drain bile from the liver), such as primary biliary cirrhosis, primary sclerosing cholangitis, and biliary atresia. The most common cause of liver transplantation in children is biliary atresia.

Dr. Aditya Nanavati is a Liver Transplant Specialist in Mumbai. Liver transplantation can also treat certain cancers that start in the liver.

Decompensated Cirrhosis - Signs And Symptoms

Gastrointestinal bleeding – As the liver heals better, the blood flow resistance of the portal vein increases, and the pressure of the portal vein system increases. This portal hypertension requires an alternative route for blood to return to the heart. Due to the abnormally large amount of blood flowing through under increased pressure, the small veins throughout the abdomen but outside the liver are enlarged and have thin walls. These fragile veins, called varicose veins, usually line certain parts of the gastrointestinal tract, especially the esophagus and stomach, and are prone to rupture and bleeding. When bleeding occurs in the intestines, it can be life-threatening.
Fluid retention – One function of the liver is to synthesize many proteins that circulate in the blood, including albumin. Albumin and other proteins in the bloodstream retain fluid in the vascular space, creating what is called osmotic pressure (or osmotic pressure). In liver failure, low levels of albumin force fluids out of the blood, and these fluids cannot be reabsorbed. Body fluids can also accumulate in the legs (peripheral or foot edema) or chest cavity (pleural fluid). Fluid retention is first treated by strictly limiting the intake of salt in the diet, followed by drugs (diuretics) to force salt and water to be further lost through the kidneys, and finally by inserting a needle into the abdominal or thoracic cavity for intermittent drainage.
Encephalopathy – The liver cannot remove ammonia and other toxins from the blood, causing these substances to accumulate. These toxins can cause cognitive dysfunction, from disturbing sleep-wake cycle patterns to mild confusion and coma.
Jaundice – One of the main functions of the liver is to eliminate the breakdown products of hemoglobin, which is a molecule that carries oxygen in the blood. Bilirubin is one of the breakdown products processed and excreted by the liver. In liver failure, bilirubin will not be excreted from the body, and the level of bilirubin in the blood will increase. All tissues of the skin and body will turn yellow.

What Happens During Liver Transplantation?

A liver transplant usually takes 6 to 12 hours. During the operation, best Liver Transplant Specialist in Mumbai will remove liver and replace it with a donor’s liver.
Since transplantation is an important operation, the surgeon will need to place several tubes in the body. These tubes will help your body perform certain functions during and on the days after surgery.
A tube will be put into your trachea (trachea) through your mouth to help you breathe during the procedure and the first or two days thereafter. The tube is connected to a ventilator, which will mechanically expand your lungs.
The nasogastric tube will be inserted into your stomach through your nose to expel secretions from the stomach. It will stay for a few days until your bowel function returns to normal.
A tube called a urinary catheter will be placed in your bladder to drain urine. This will be removed a few days after the operation, and a tube will be placed in your abdomen to drain the blood and fluid around the liver. These will be kept for about a week.

Why and When is a Pediatric Liver Transplant Suggested?

If a child is suffering from liver failure and is on the verge of death, a pediatric liver transplant is recommended. Liver cancer, biliary atresia in newborns, sudden or acute liver failure due to an autoimmune disease, Wilson’s Disease, an overabundance of medicines, hemochromatosis (excess iron in the body), and alpha-1 antitrypsin, as well as other metabolic and genetic diseases like PFIC, can all severely damage the liver, resulting in liver failure. In order for such newborns to survive and enjoy a normal, healthy life, Dr. Aditya J. Nanavati, who is a reputed and most experienced Pediatric Liver Transplant Surgeon in Mumbai and Liver Transplant Specialist recommends liver transplants.

Risks Associated with Pediatric Liver Transplant Surgery

Pediatric liver transplant surgery, like any other organ transplant procedure, comes with its own set of risks and complications.

Bleeding and infection
Blood artery occlusion is likely to occur in the new liver.
The replacement liver may be rejected by the body’s immune system.
Bile leakage or clogged bile ducts
After the procedure, the liver may be momentarily unable to function.

Evaluation of the Patient and Suitability:

The child will be physically examined by the Pediatric Liver Transplant Surgeon will use several tests such as CT scans, ultrasounds, blood tests, and dental examinations to determine the child’s fitness. At the same time, these findings will aid in the placement of the child on the liver transplant waiting list. A psychiatric examination of the family will also be conducted.

If a child has liver disease, liver transplant surgery is not suggested.

Cardiac problems and their complications
Another serious health problem that might get worse after the transplant
Sepsis that is uncontrollable
Cancer has spread throughout the body.

Why Choose Dr. Aditya J. Nanavati?

Dr. Aditya J. Nanavati is the best Pediatric Liver Transplant Surgeon in Mumbai provides services in cadaveric and living donor liver transplantation. He has vast experience and is a well-known surgeon in Mumbai and makes visits to several clinics offering his services.