Is recurrent hepatitis C worse with living donors?

Angiotensin blockade does not affect fibrosis progression in recurrent hepatitis C after liver transplantation

BACKGROUND

Liver transplantation (LT) for hepatitis C virus (HCV)-related end-stage liver disease is impaired by universal disease recurrence and suboptimal response to antiviral therapy. Inhibition of angiotensin-II signalling by angiotensin-converting enzyme inhibitors (ACE-I) or angiotensin-II receptor blockers (ARB) decreases hepatic stellate cell activation in vitro and hepatic fibrogenesis in animal models. A single-center retrospective analysis suggested that angiotensin blockade (AB) inhibits fibrosis progression in recurrent HCV post-LT. This study assessed the effect of AB on fibrosis progression in an independent patient cohort.

METHODS

Chart review of all patients who underwent transplantation in our institution for HCV-related ESLD between January 2000 and February 2008 revealed 109 patients with ≥2 protocol liver biopsies and free of antiviral therapy post-LT up to the last biopsy analyzed; 27 of 109 patients were treated with ACE-I/ARB for ≥12 months, 82 were not. Fibrosis was staged using METAVIR.

RESULTS

Live-donor LT was more frequent in controls than in the AB group (25% vs 11%; P < .05). However, parameters known to affect outcome of recurrent HCV, including donor age, prevalence of diabetes, acute cellular rejection, and immunosuppression, were similar in both groups. Time between first and last biopsy (median, 23 months), stage of fibrosis, fibrosis progression rates (median 0.47 vs 0.45 unit/y; P = .46), and time to develop fibrosis stage ≥2 did not differ between groups. Results held true if deceased-donor LT were analyzed separately.

CONCLUSION

Our study does not support the contention of a previous report that use of AB reduces fibrosis progression in recurrent HCV post-LT.

Living donor vs. deceased donor liver transplantation for patients with hepatitis C virus-related diseases

BACKGROUND & AIMS

Living donor liver transplantation (LDLT) provides a timely alternative to deceased donor liver transplantation (DDLT) for patients with hepatitis C virus-related (HCV-related) diseases in the circumstances of severe organ dearth. However, the patient and graft outcomes, and recurrence of HCV after LDLT remain controversial. Here we sought to compare the post-transplant outcomes after LDLT and DDLT.

METHODS

A systematic review and meta-analysis were performed. PubMed/MEDLINE, EMBASE, and the Cochrane database were searched for eligible literatures. The major end points were patient survival, graft survival, recurrence rate, and acute rejection. The pooled odds ratio (OR) was calculated using random-effects model to synthesize the results. Heterogeneity and publication bias were quantitatively evaluated.

RESULTS

Fourteen studies with a total of 2024 participants were included in this analysis. We found comparable patient survival between groups (1-year: OR, 0.78, 95% CI, 0.48-1.26, p=0.31; 2-year: OR, 0.71, 95% CI, 0.41-1.23, p=0.23; 3-year: OR, 0.79, 95% CI, 0.5-1.12, p=0.18; 4-year: OR, 0.92, 95% CI, 0.43-1.95, p=0.83; 5-year: OR, 1.06, 95% CI, 0.53-2.14, p=0.86, respectively). Although 1- and 3-year graft survivals were inferior in LDLT, 2-, 4- and 5-year graft survivals were similar. HCV recurrence rates and acute rejection rates were equivalent.

CONCLUSIONS

LDLT was equivalent to DDLT in terms of patient survival, long-term graft survival, HCV recurrence, and acute rejection rates, with potentially lower short-term patient and graft survival.

Management of recurrent hepatitis C infection after liver transplantation

Recurrence of hepatitis C virus remains a near-universal phenomenon after liver transplantation (LT) and is responsible for the high morbidity and low survival seen in these patients. The severity of recurrent disease varies depending on multiple factors, only some of which are modifiable. Antiviral therapy is associated with improved outcomes, but viral clearance is only attainable in a small percentage of this patient population. This patient population is in need of new therapeutic options, and it remains to be seen whether direct-acting antiviral agents will be the answer to this ongoing therapeutic question.

Management of posttransplant hepatitis C infection

PURPOSE OF REVIEW

Chronic hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection is the leading cause of liver transplantation. Outcome of HCV-associated liver transplantation has been worse than transplantation from other causes. This is mostly related to universal recurrence of HCV in the allograft leading to graft and patient loss or retransplantation. Current antiviral therapies (AVTs) are inadequate and ineffective in the vast majority of the patients with intolerable side effects in most. However, a sustained virologic response (SVR) is associated with improved graft and patient survival. New specifically targeted AVTs for HCV (STAT-C) agents in development will significantly improve the success of AVT. This review focuses on recent data in peritransplant management of HCV with special emphasis on predictors of outcome, diagnosis, prevention and control of reinfection with newer treatments on the horizon.

RECENT FINDINGS

In the immediate pretransplant setting, AVT should be considered in select patients to eradicate the virus. Careful donor selection, immunosuppression (IMS) modulation with steroid and calcineurin inhibitor (CNI) minimization, avoidance of T-cell-depleting treatments and acute rejection episodes, and control of metabolic syndrome can improve allograft outcomes and improve the response to AVT. AVT prior to significant damage to the allograft is strongly recommended.

SUMMARY

With modified novel IMS protocols, careful donor selection, and AVT prior to significant damage to the allograft we can improve the outcome of posttransplant hepatitis C infection. Albeit there are no available data on new antiviral agents, STAT-Cs will have a significant impact in this setting in the near future.