Bowel obstruction due to diaphragmatic hernia in an elder child after pediatric liver transplantation.

A 10-yr-old boy with end-stage liver cirrhosis due to Wilson's disease received a living donor liver transplantation (LDLT) at our institution. The donor was his father and the graft was a left lateral segment. The liver transplantation procedure and the postoperative course were uneventful. Two months after the procedure, he developed a first episode of bowel obstruction that was treated with conservative therapy. During a second episode of bowel obstruction, he also presented respiratory distress. A plain chest X-ray revealed the presence of small intestine loops in the right thoracic cavity and bowel obstruction due to diaphragmatic hernia was diagnosed. Repair of the diaphragmatic hernia was performed and the patient has been doing well after the surgery. Diaphragmatic hernia after LDLT is rare but should be recognized as a possible complication when a left lobe or a left lateral segment graft is used.