Arterial reconstruction in rat liver transplantation--development of a new tubing technique of the common hepatic artery.

Arterialization of liver transplants in rats results in an improved function compared with grafts without artery. Here we compared techniques of reconstruction, focusing on thrombosis, duration of procedure and severity of pancreas damage after dissecting the gastroduodenal artery (GDA). Group 1: tube was inserted into the proper hepatic artery (PHA) of donor and recipient. Group 2: tube was placed into common hepatic artery (CHA) of donor and recipient. Group 3: cuff was placed over the CHA of the recipient and the graft's artery was slipped over the cuff. Tubing in PHA leads to a thrombosis rate of 40% after 6 months. Arteries remain perfused by using a cuff or tube in CHA. Dissection of the GDA does not influence pancreatic perfusion. Reconstruction took 19 s using the large tube, about 30 s for the tube into PHA and 1 min for the cuff. The method of choice is using a tube for the CHA.