Evaluation Within 30 Days of Referral for Liver Transplantation is Associated with Reduced Mortality: A Multicenter Analysis of Patients Referred Within the VA Health System.

ABSTRACT:

Background

Successful liver transplantation offers the possibility of improved survival among patients with decompensated cirrhosis. However, there is wide variability in access to care and promptness of the transplant evaluation process in the United States.

Methods

We performed a multicenter retrospective study of 1118 patients who underwent evaluation for liver transplantation at the 6 Veterans Affairs' transplant centers from 2013 to 2018. Of these, 832 patients were evaluated within 30 d and 286 > 30 d after referral. We studied the differential effects of the time from referral to evaluation on pretransplant and posttransplant mortality and transplant list dropout and explored predictors of early transplant evaluation.

Results

Patients in the early evaluation gr

SUBMITTER: John BV 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC8239056 | biostudies-literature | 2022 Jan

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature