Abstract
Objectives: Postoperative steatosis is sometimes found in patients undergoing liver transplantation (LT). However, the nutritional significance is unclear. Therefore, we investigated nutritional significance and risk factor for postoperative steatosis in the early period after LT.
Methods: We retrospectively analyzed 117 patients who underwent adult living donor LT in our center between May 2010 and September 2012. Sixty-two of 117 patients underwent liver biopsy due to liver dysfunction during hospitalization. We compared various nutritional parameters including daily calorie intake per ideal body weight, ratio of non-protein calorie-to-nitrogen, and route of calorie intake between steatosis group (histologically diagnosed steatosis equal or more than 5%, n=41) and non-steatosis group (steatosis less than 5%, n=21). Moreover, the change of fatty acid level before and after the diagnosis of steatosis and risk factor for posttransplant steatosis were analyzed.
Results: Calorie intake, ratio of non-protein calorie-to-nitrogen, and bloodchemical data just before diagnosis did not differ between steatosis group and non-steatosis group. Interestingly, distribution of 2 peaks characteristics in calorie intake, namely calorie over and calorie shortage, was found in the steatosis group. Calorie over or calorie shortage was a risk factor for posttransplant steatosis. Route of calorie intake was significantly different between patients with calorie over and calorie shortage. The ratio of eicosapentaenoic acid to arachidonic acid significantly decreased after the diagnosis of steatosis.
Conclusions: Posttransplant steatosis was closely involved with calorie over or calorie shortage. Decrease in the ratio of eicosapentaenoic acid to arachidonic acid would be useful as a surrogate marker of posttransplant steatosis.
