Utilization of activated carbon hemoperfusion to assist recovery of ischemically damaged canine liver allografts.

The sensitivity of liver allografts to even minimal periods of ischemia currently limits the duration of hepatic preservation prior to liver transplantation. This study evaluates the role of activated carbon hemoperfusion (ACH) for assisting the recovery of canine livers ischemically damaged by a 20-min occlusion of the portal vein and hepatic artery prior to organ harvesting. Animals in Group I (n = 5) receiving damaged liver allografts without ACH survived a mean (+/- SD) of 18.0 +/- 13.5 h. One ACH treatment given to recipients immediately after liver transplantation in Group II (n = 5) resulted in improved survival to a mean of 3.8 +/- 2.16 days (p less than 0.05). The best survival was obtained after three ACH treatments in Group III (n = 6) on days 0, 1, and 2 (26.6 +/- 27.1 days) (p less than 0.05). These results indicate that ACH may be helpful in assisting the recovery of ischemically damaged liver allografts after transplantation.