Michael Charlton, Pavla Kasparova, Shiobhan Weston, Keith Lindor, Yaakov Maor‐Kendler, Russell H. Wiesner, Charles B. Rosen, Kenneth P. Batts – 30 December 2003 – Although nonalcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH) has generally been considered a benign condition, the increasing prevalence and severity of obesity has heightened concerns about the frequency with which NASH progresses to end‐stage liver disease. The aim of this study is to determine the frequency, clinical features, and posttransplantation history of decompensated liver disease secondary to NASH.

David J. Brandhagen – 30 December 2003 – Although hereditary hemochromatosis (HHC) is relatively common, it is an uncommon indication for orthotopic liver transplantation (OLT). The diagnosis of HHC in patients with end‐stage liver disease is difficult because many of these patients have elevated serum and tissue iron levels. Of patients undergoing OLT with iron stores in the range typical for HHC, approximately 10% are homozygous for the C282Y mutation.

Robert J. Fontana, Hie‐Won L. Hann, Teresa Wright, Gregory Everson, Alfred Baker, Eugene R. Schiff, Carolyn Riely, Gaya Anschuetz, Melanie Riker‐Hopkins, Nathaniel Brown – 30 December 2003 – Hepatitis B virus (HBV) infection after liver transplantation (LT) may lead to severe and rapidly progressive graft failure. Antiviral treatment may be of benefit in selected patients with recurrent hepatitis B post‐LT. The aim of this prospective open‐label study is to determine the safety and efficacy of lamivudine in 33 liver transplant recipients with active HBV infection.

Michelle J. Gottschlich, Kay L. Aardema, Eileen M. Burd, Raouf E. Nakhleh, Kimberly A. Brown, Marwan S. Abouljoud, Kathryn Hirst, Dilip K. Moonka – 30 December 2003 – Persistence of hepatitis C virus (HCV) after orthotopic liver transplantation is almost universal in HCV‐infected patients. Histological examination of liver biopsy specimens can be variable in distinguishing between recurrent hepatitis C and acute cellular rejection.

James F. Trotter, Michael Wachs, T. Bak, Thomas Trouillot, Nancy Stolpman, Gregory T. Everson, Igal Kam – 30 December 2003 – At our center, we have performed liver transplantation since 1995 with a rapid‐taper steroid protocol (weaning steroids by day 14 posttransplantation). Beginning in 2000, we further reduced the use of corticosteroids to 3 days and added sirolimus to our immunosuppressive regimen.

Motohiko Yasutomi, Scott Harmsmen, Franco Innocenti, Nelson DeSouza, Ruud A.F. Krom – 30 December 2003 – The prolonged waiting time caused by the lack of donor livers leads to an increasing number of terminally ill patients waiting for lifesaving liver transplantation. To rescue these patients, transplant programs are accepting donor organs from the expanded donor pool, using donors of increasingly older age, as well as from the pediatric age group, often despite significant mismatch in liver size.

Lydia M. Petrovic – 30 December 2003

Richard K. Gilroy, Stephen V. Lynch, Russell W. Strong, Paul Kerlin, Glenda A. Balderson, Katherine A. Stuart, Darrell H.G. Crawford – 30 December 2003 – Resource utilization is an important consideration when patients are selected for orthotopic liver transplantation (OLT). The Mayo Risk Score has been proposed to help predict optimum time for OLT. We assessed the relation between Mayo risk score, Child‐Pugh score, and resource utilization and outcome after OLT for primary biliary cirrhosis.

Javier Crespo, Monteserrat Rivero, Marta Mayorga, Emilio Fabrega, Fernando Casafont, Manuel Gomez‐Fleitas, Fernando Pons‐Romero – 30 December 2003 – To date, there have been no reports of the involvement of the Fas system in recurrent hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection after orthotopic liver transplantation (OLT). In 25 patients who underwent OLT for HCV‐related liver cirrhosis, we evaluated the expression of the Fas antigen (FasAg) on hepatocytes, apoptic hepatocytes, and serum levels of soluble Fas (sFas).

Pedro W. Baron, David Sindram, Dave Higdon, David N. Howell, Marcia R. Gottfried, Janet E. Tuttle‐Newhall, Pierre‐Alain Clavien – 30 December 2003 – The majority of patients undergoing orthotopic liver transplantation (OLT) have end‐stage liver disease secondary to hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection. Although OLT does not cure the disease and recurrent virus is present in all patients, relatively few patients with recurrent viremia develop clinical disease. When the disease recurs, however, the results can be devastating.