The Incidence and Fatality of Biliary Atresia in the Netherlands : An Indicator for the Need for Pediatric Liver Transnlantation

抄録

Two handred of the 310 children that died in the Netherlands over a 10 year period as a result of a liver or biliary tract condition could have been potential candidates for liver transplantation. Seventy five percent of these candidates had biliary atresia of which the incidence in this country is estimated to be 0.93 per 10,000 life births. At an actual annual birth rate of 180,000, sixteen to seventeen new caces may be expected per year of which 13 to 14 will die, if the results of treatment remain unchanged. Even if the Japanese high standard of treatment can be reached, a considerable number of patients with biliary atresia will progress to end stage hepatic disease. The sesuts of livertransplantation achieved in these patients up till now are poor, showing the need for further experimental work.