Successful living related liver transplantation in an adult with fulminant hepatic failure.

We report a case of an adult female who developed fulminant hepatic failure (FHF) during the second trimester of pregnancy and underwent a successful living related liver transplantation because no cadaveric donor was available during the development of life-threatening symptoms. A left lateral segment hepatic graft was procured from her brother, whose body weight was similar to hers. Her postoperative course was complicated by bleeding at the biliary anastomosis and subsequently by a biliary leak. Nevertheless, the complications were corrected surgically and the patient recovered well with a good quality of life 5 months after the transplant. This case suggests that living related liver transplantation should be considered more frequently for adult FHF patients. As the window of therapeutic opportunity is narrow for the dramatic condition of FHF, wide acceptance of this procedure will be of great benefit for the patients suffering from FHF.