The liver is one of the most important organs in the human body. It produces and stores bile and is the main site for deamination, cell disintegration, and glucose storage. So in other words, the organ is responsible for maintaining the amino acids, nitrogenous products in the blood, and several other components. If it starts acting up, there will be several health consequences, ultimately leading to fatal conditions. 

Most doctors support the liver through a healthy lifestyle and different medications. However, these often fail to generate the appropriate results when the organ is beyond repair. At this point, the only remedy one can have is through a liver transplant procedure. Despite being a popular medical treatment method, only some people have in-depth knowledge.

The section below explains the eligibility criteria, surgery procedure, recovery methods, and several other aspects. It will help you live a peaceful life after liver transplant. 

What is liver transplantation, and when is it done?

The first thing that should be known about liver transplantation is what happens during the procedure. Ideally, the liver comprises multiple parts, each with different functions. Doctors can support the organ initially using medicines and a healthy lifestyle. But at extreme stages, the medicines or any lifestyle change fail to restore the proper functioning of the organ system.

So, liver transplantation is the ultimate procedure doctors opt for as a treatment in cases where the organ fails to work or respond to any existing treatment method. Either a certain part or the entire organ is transplanted to the health conditions. The donor needs to have a liver of the exact size and shape of the patient, and several other criteria are noted before starting the transplantation procedure.

Dr. Vivek Vij, one of India's reputed liver transplant surgeons, has successfully performed various operations so far. His patients are now living their life peacefully without showing any negative symptoms. Therefore, the success rate of this treatment method depends not only on how the lifestyle is post-surgery but also on the skills and patients of the doctor.

What are the criteria for a liver transplant procedure?

Every person needs to understand what exactly the requirements are for liver transplantation. If you have an organ in the nonfunctional stage, you cannot opt for organ transplantation because several factors must be considered beforehand. So, in this following section, we have explained some of these considerations that doctors rely on to ensure that the patient will have a higher success rate of living after the surgery is complete.

  1. Forest and foremost, your liver must be beyond the extent of repair through medicines and other treatment processes. For example, some health conditions where doctors prefer to go for a liver transplant are liver failure, hepatocellular carcinoma, and portal hypertension.
  2. There should be an end-to-end assessment of your health based on the recommendations of multiple doctors, including a hepatologist, a transplant surgeon, a gastroenterologist, a cardiologist, a neurologist, and many more. Examinations like endoscopy, colonoscopy, MRI scans, electrocardiogram, and several other such tests must be done before the liver transplant procedure.
  3. Also, a huge factor of finance is involved in the transplant, which should be noted before the start of the surgery. Most insurance providers cover the costs of medical treatment, along with pre and post-hospitalization charges. However, if the patient has any existing life-threatening comorbidity, there can be certain issues with the insurance provider that need to be handled beforehand.

What things should you know about liver transplant surgery?

Many people think the liver transplant procedure is simple because doctors must replace the existing organ with a new one from the donor. Had it been this simple, the success and survival rates would have been 100% since the beginning. But that is not the case, so every person must know certain facts about this treatment process.

  1. There are three different types of liver transplant surgeries being performed in India. The first is deceased organ donation, where the liver is taken from a person who has died but is a prospective donor for the patient. In certain cases, a specific organ section is removed from a living donor and transplanted into the patient. In the third case, the liver is split into numerous parts and transplanted to multiple patients from a deceased person who recently died.
  2. Transplant doctors are different from hepatologists. The former professionals are experienced in organ transplantation, deciding who will be the prospective donor for the patient, the existing comorbidities that can prove to be challenging, and so on. On the contrary, a hepatologist is completely dedicated to studying the liver only.
  3. The three major blood tests required to determine the patient's priority conditions requiring transplant are bilirubin, creatinine, and INR.
  4. The organ size, shape, and blood group should match the patient and donor to be compatible with the liver transplant procedures. 
  5. It is possible for the person who has undergone the surgery to resume old activities and return to normal life after the process. However, every patient should maintain a proper lifestyle, follow the restrictions mentioned by the doctor, and avoid any harmful habit that can reduce the lifetime.

What is the recovery process of liver transplant surgery?

Whether you choose the best liver transplant hospital in India is fine because the recovery process and success rate depend on multitudinous factors. Knowing about these beforehand can help you decide if you are ready to undergo surgery or need more time. The riskiest factor about this procedure is rejection. Since a new organ is inserted into the body, the immune system will likely reject the introduction. In that case, the survival of chances of the person reduces significantly, thereby leading to a fetal condition.

Therefore, doctors always form a recovery routine that eliminates the rejection risks of the transplanted liver. Once the surgery is done, your doctor will continuously monitor your body and several other functions to assess whether the new liver is accumulating well. Your body needs to respond positively, like maintaining the WBC count, keeping the bilirubin and biliverdin levels at optimal conditions, no irregular spikes in SGPT and SGOT levels, and so on.

Also, since the surgery is quite complex, you might have to stay under the care of a professional for 24 hours for at least six weeks. This time is crucial since your body starts responding to the liver and heals internally. If proper care is given, the success rate is manageable. During this time, you must monitor any possible signs of infection, like fever, extreme pain at the surgery site, swelling, intramuscular bleeding, etc. If you suspect any of these symptoms, immediately report to your doctor to take the necessary precautions.

To sum up, the following are some ways you can recover faster from our liver transplant procedure and live your life for a long time.

  1. Medicines should be taken right on time without fail. If you miss any dose, immediately connect with your doctor to take the suggestions but do not take the medicines yourself.
  2. You must ensure that the lifestyle changes you follow after the surgery are healthy and beneficial for your overall body. For example, leaving smoking is a very good change, but you shouldn't be exposed to passive smoking also. Similarly, replacing whiskey with wine isn't good because both have an alcohol content that will reduce the success rate of the liver transplant surgery.
  3. Once your body has healed itself internally, start exercising consistently every day. Your weight will be a big factor in determining your life after a liver transplant. You must considerably reduce your body weight so the new liver won't be at risk anymore.

Conclusion

With professionals like Dr. Vivek Vij, patients can live a little longer despite having a nonfunctional liver. Liver transplantation has gained huge success in recent years thanks to developing technologies, in-depth skill acquisition, and many more. Therefore, you should connect with the best liver transplant hospital in India to ensure you completely understand the procedure in no time. 

FAQs

  • What is the survival chance of a liver transplant surgery?

The approximate survival change of liver transplant procedures varies from one patient to another. However, it is often estimated at 75% to 85% according to the comorbidities, current liver conditions, doctor’s skills, and many more. 

  • How long does it take for the person to recover after a liver transplant surgery?

The approximate time needed to recover post a liver transplant surgery is six weeks to 6 months. For the entire transplantation, the healing time is more than the one where a particular section of the organ is transplanted. 

  • What are some limitations to follow during the recovery period post-liver transplantation?

The major limitations to follow post the transplantation process is alcohol and smoking consumption, avoidance of fatty food products, reduction in protein content, and many more. Furthermore, you must ensure your lifestyle is not sedimentary, i.e., without physical activity. 

  • How to choose the best hospital for liver transplants in India?

You must ensure the hospital you have chosen is licensed to deal with liver transplantation, followed by reviewing past patient reviews. This will give you a clear idea of whether the hospital can be trusted.