_ The Transplant Team: If a liver transplant is recommended by a primary doctor, the person must also be evaluated by a transplantation team. The usual candidate has advanced liver disease but is otherwise in good health.
The transplantation team usually consists of a transplant coordinator, a hepatologist (liver specialist), and a transplant surgeon. It may be necessary to see a cardiologist (heart specialist) and pulmonologist (lung specialist), depending on the recipient's age and health problems.
The potential recipient may also see a psychiatrist because the liver transplantation process may be a very emotional experience that may require life adjustments.
The hepatologist and the primary doctor manage the person's health issues from before, through and after the actual surgery takes place..
A social worker may be involved in the case. This person assesses and helps develop the patient's support system, a central group of people on whom the patient can depend throughout the transplantation process The social worker also checks to see that the recipient is taking medications appropriately..
A positive support team is very important to a successful outcome. The support team can be instrumental in ensuring that the patient takes all the required medicines, which may have unpleasant side effects.
A donor is found:Once a suitable donated liver has been found, the patient is called to the hospital. It is best that the patient carry a cell phone or beeper as he or she rises on the transplant list, so that getting to the hospital can be done as quickly as possible. Donor livers function best if they are transplanted within 8 hours, although they can be used for up to 24 hours. Of course a living donor liver transplant surgery can be scheduled avoiding the "suspense" of waiting for a suitable donor liver to be found.
In the hospital: Pre-surgical studies, including blood tests, urine tests, chest x-rays and an ECG, are performed. Before surgery, an IV line is started. The patient also receives a dose of steroids-one of the medicines to prevent rejection of the new liver-and a dose of antibiotics to prevent infection. The liver transplantation procedure takes about 6-8 hours. After the transplantation, the patient is admitted to the surgical intensive care unit.