[The measurement of hepatic circulation before and after orthotopic liver transplantation in dog--by using transit-time blood flow meter and H2 clearance method].

Orthotopic liver transplantation was successfully carried out in 40 mongrel dogs, in which hepatic circulation was investigated before and after grafting. Blood flows in hepatic artery, portal vein and intrahepatic inferior vena cava were measured by using transit-time ultrasonic blood flow meter and regional tissue blood flow was determined by hydrogen gas clearance method. Before transplantation the mean blood flows were 234 +/- 95mg/min in portal vein, 118 +/- 76ml/min in hepatic artery and 291 +/- 103ml/min in inferior vena cava in 40 recipients. The blood flow ratio of portal vein and hepatic artery was 2.9 +/- 2.2. The mean regional blood flow of the liver was 63 +/- 24ml/min/100g. After transplantation, the mean blood flows decreased to 189 +/- 86ml/min in portal vein, 77 +/- 51ml/min in hepatic artery and 179 +/- 111ml/min in inferior vena cava and the regional tissue blood flow was 57 +/- 25ml/min/100g. Hepatic arterial flow decreased by 37 percent after transplantation, however, portal venous flow decreased by 24 percent and the regional blood flow decreased by 9 percent after transplantation of the liver. These data suggested that the microcirculation of the liver was slightly disturbed after liver transplantation in dog, which was in part due to the decreased blood flows of the hepatic artery and portal vein.