Back-Table Surgery for Liver Grafts

In orthotopic liver transplantation, 'back-table' surgery, although usually performed in the recipient's operating room, represents the final moment of the donor operation and is one of the most important and delicate phases of the whole procedure in liver graft procurement. With the multiple organ procurement techniques used, especially the Starzl fast technique without preliminary hilar dissection of the liver, the graft has to be prepared accurately on the bench, with careful cleaning of the arterial axis, the portal vein, and of the cava, and correct checking of unexpected injuries that must be precisely noted. Our experience in 34 back-table preparations of the liver for its transplant is reported here.