Does the standard vs piggyback surgical technique affect the development of early acute renal failure after orthotopic liver transplantation?

The objective of this study was to evaluate the effect of the surgical technique on postoperative renal function during the first week after liver transplantation (OLT). We performed a retrospective study of 184 consecutive OLT. Criteria for acute renal failure were: serum creatinine >1.5 mg/dL, an increase by 50% in the baseline serum creatinine, or oliguria requiring renal replacement therapy. The distribution of patients according to the surgical technique was: standard (n=84), venovenous bypass (n=20), and piggyback (n=80). Other variables analyzed were: intraoperative requirement for blood products, treatment with adrenergic agonists, intraoperative complications, and postreperfusion syndrome. Univariate analysis showed the following parameters to be significantly related to postoperative renal failure: intraoperative fresh frozen plasma and cryoprecipitate requirements, intraoperative complications, postreperfusion syndrome, need for noradrenaline or dobutamine, standard surgical technique versus piggyback (39% vs 18%, P<.01) and venovenous vs piggyback (50% vs 18%, P<.01). Logistic regression analysis identified the following variables as having independent prognostic value: (1) Standard surgical technique vs piggyback (OR=3.3, P=.01); (2) venovenous vs piggyback (OR=4.7, P=.02); and (3) >20 U cryoprecipitate requirement (OR=1.04, P=.01). In conclusion, compared with the piggyback technique, the standard surgical technique appears to be an independent risk factor for postoperative acute renal failure. When venovenous bypass is used in patients who do not tolerate trial clamping of inferior vena cava, it does not reduce the incidence of postoperative renal failure. Finally, the piggyback technique significantly reduces the probability of acute renal failure after liver transplantation.