Sequential changes of hand grip strength and impact of postoperative nutrition in liver transplantation

Abstract

Background: The characteristics of hand grip strength (HGS) in patients undergoing liver transplantation (LT) and the sequential changes of HGS and impact of postoperative nutrition on recovery of HGS after LT are unclear.

Methods: A retrospective analysis was performed in 125 recipients who underwent first living donor LT (LDLT) between January 2013 and February 2020. Patients who died or were transferred to other hospitals within 6 months after LDLT and those with short bowel syndrome were excluded. The characteristics of HGS in the patients were investigated by examining the correlation between HGS and skeletal muscle mass, sequential changes in HGS after LT, and the impact of postoperative nutrition on recovery of HGS after LT. The effect of recovery of HGS at 1 month after LT on postoperative length of hospital stay was also examined.

Results: Forty-five patients (36%) had low HGS and there was a strong positive correlation between HGS and skeletal muscle mass (p < 0.0001, r = 0.7656). HGS recovered to the pretransplant level at 6 months after LT. Patients with low preoperative HGS had significantly earlier recovery compared to patients with high preoperative HGS, based on measurements at 1, 6, and 12 months after LT. Patients who received sufficient protein in the early posttransplant period had a significantly higher HGS recovery rate than patients who received insufficient protein. The postoperative length of hospital stay was significantly shorter in patients with high preoperative HGS compared to those with low preoperative HGS.

Conclusions: Sufficient nutrition after LT contributes to early HGS recovery and a shorter postoperative hospital stay.