Liver Transplant News and Research

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When a patient presents with end stage liver disease or liver failure he or she may be considered for a liver transplantation. The first step in this is often a rigorous assessment and being placed on a waiting list.

Exercise could help reduce metabolic syndrome problems in liver transplant recipients

New research reveals that metabolic syndrome-risk factors that can lead to heart disease and/or stroke-is common in liver transplant recipients, with rates highest at one year following the procedure.

7 Aug 2013

Interferon-free treatment for genotype-1b hepatitis C patients: an interview with Professor Wulf Boecher, Boehringer Ingelheim

Genotype 1 is, worldwide, the most prevalent genotype of the hepatitis C virus. It accounts for around seventy percent of all hepatitis C infections.

30 Jul 2013

Hepatitis C (HCV) testing for baby boomers: an interview with Dr. Donald Jensen, Director, Center for Liver Diseases, University of Chicago

The USPSTF agreed with the CDC that since most patients (75%) who are currently infected with hepatitis C were born between 1945 - 1965, and since risk-based screening has not been successful in identifying these individuals, that a one time age-based hepatitis C blood test was necessary.

29 Jul 2013

Researchers provide new model for studying drug targets and therapies for AIH

A gene mutation disrupts the activity of certain immune cells and causes the immune system to erroneously attack the liver, according to a new animal study from the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai.

24 Jul 2013

FDA approves Astellas' ASTAGRAF XL for prophylaxis of organ rejection in kidney transplant patients

Astellas Pharma US, Inc., a U.S. subsidiary of Tokyo-based Astellas Pharma Inc., announced today that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration has approved ASTAGRAF XLTM (tacrolimus extended-release capsules) for the prophylaxis of organ rejection in patients receiving a kidney transplant with mycophenolate mofetil and corticosteroids, with or without basiliximab induction.

20 Jul 2013

Research shows split liver transplantation carries no increased risk of failure in either recipient

Split liver transplantation carries no increased risk of failure in either recipient, allowing surgeons to safely save two lives from a single donated organ (graft), according to new research from Boston Children's Hospital published online in the Journal of the American College of Surgeons.

19 Jul 2013

Researchers develop new model for more equitable allocation of livers for transplantation

Using the same type of mathematical formulas used to draw political redistricting maps, Johns Hopkins researchers say they have developed a model that would allow for the more equitable allocation of livers from deceased donors for transplantation.

12 Jul 2013

Study shows iron-uptake receptor plays a role in HCV infection

Hepatitis C virus (HCV) infects more than 170 million people worldwide. Approximately 80 percent of infections lead to chronic illness including fibrosis, cirrhosis, cancer and also hepatic iron overload.

11 Jun 2013

Research reveals transplantation of partial livers from deceased adult has become less risky for infants

New research reveals that transplantation of partial livers from deceased adult and teen donors has become less risky for infants and young children, helping to save these young lives.

11 Jun 2013

EU funds d-LIVER project to help people suffering from liver disease

The EU has provided funding for the d-LIVER project, in which researchers from several countries will work on a number of measures to help people suffering from liver disease.

5 Jun 2013

Researchers link coffee consumption with reduced risk of primary sclerosing cholangitis

Research presented today at Digestive Disease Week explores new discoveries in liver disease research, with findings about the impact of coffee on autoimmune disease and palliative care for cirrhotic patients.

20 May 2013

Program on Medicine and Religion selects faculty scholars

The University of Chicago Medicine's Program on Medicine and Religion has selected its second round of faculty scholars whose focus will be on the relationship between a physician's spirituality and their ability to deal with the pressures of practicing medicine.

6 May 2013

HCV screening of prison inmate drug users: an interview with Dr. Arthur Kim, Massachusetts General Hospital and Harvard Medical School

Prisoners overall have a very high rate of past or present injection drug use, which is a major risk factor for HCV infection due to repeated exposures to needles.

1 May 2013

Study: Biologic response modifying drugs can cause acute liver injury

A commonly used class of biologic response modifying drugs can cause acute liver injury with elevated liver enzymes, according to a new study in Clinical Gastroenterology and Hepatology, the official clinical practice journal of the American Gastroenterological Association.

30 Apr 2013

Bucksbaum Institute of Clinical Excellence conducts second annual symposium on April 26

Jerome Lowenstein, MD, founder and director of the Program for Humanistic Aspects of Medical Education at New York University, will be the keynote speaker at the Bucksbaum Institute of Clinical Excellence's second annual symposium on Friday, April 26.

26 Apr 2013

Calcipotriol drug offers a potential treatment option for fibrotic diseases

Liver fibrosis results from an excessive accumulation of tough, fibrous scar tissue and occurs in most types of chronic liver diseases. In industrialized countries, the main causes of liver injury leading to fibrosis include chronic hepatitis virus infection, excess alcohol consumption and, increasingly, nonalcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH).

26 Apr 2013

Living liver donors at risk from life-threatening “near-miss” events?

A study published in Liver Transplantation, a journal of the American Association for the Study of Liver Diseases and the International Liver Transplantation Society, reports that donor mortality is about 1 in 500 donors with living donor liver transplantation (LDLT).

25 Apr 2013

Genetic study defines link between primary sclerosing cholangitis and other autoimmune diseases

Researchers have newly associated nine genetic regions with a rare autoimmune disease of the liver known as primary sclerosing cholangitis (PSC). This brings the total number of genetic regions associated with the disease to 16.

22 Apr 2013

Research findings describe specific profile of patients with ACLF

In this prospective study, led by Dr Richard Moreau, INSERM Research Director (Mixed Research Unit 773 "Centre de Recherche biom-dicale Bichat-Beaujon"; INSERM/Universit- Paris Diderot) who is also a practitioner attached to the Hepatology Department of the Beaujon Hospital (AP-HP), researchers studied a cohort of 1343 patients from 12 European countries.

20 Apr 2013

New research shows safety can be improved for people participating in medical experiments

In almost 90 per cent of cases, novel drugs tested on humans by pharmaceutical companies do not work as intended and must be scrapped. Often the drugs do not work, while at worst, test subjects die. New research from the University of Southern Denmark now shows that this number can be reduced.

12 Apr 2013