Liver Transplant Outcomes in Patients With Postcapillary Pulmonary Hypertension

Abstract

Background. Postcapillary pulmonary hypertension (PH) can be seen in cirrhosis. Research and treatment goals exist for patients with portopulmonary hypertension but not for postcapillary PH. The aim of this study was to investigate outcomes after liver transplant (LT) for patients with postcapillary PH. Methods. This was a retrospective cohort study of 1173 patients who underwent LT at our center between 2010 and 2020. Using a propensity score matched analysis followed by multivariable Cox modeling on matched patients, we compared post-LT survival between patients with and without postcapillary PH. We also compared several post-LT outcomes between patient with different types of PH. Results. Sixty-eight patients had PH, and 50 had postcapillary PH. The median age was 59 y and the sample was 54% male. There was no significant difference in mortality between patients with postcapillary PH and patients without PH (hazard ratio, 1.72; 95% confidence interval, 0.90-3.31; P = 0.10). There was no significant difference in survival between patients with any type of PH and those without PH. There was no significance difference in post-LT survival, acute kidney injury, or pulmonary edema between patients with different types of PH. Patients with postcapillary PH who survived had a higher cardiac output than those who died (11 L/min in patients who lived, as compared with 8 L/min in patients who died; P = 0.03). Conclusions. Postcapillary PH does not appear to convey a negative impact on post-LT survival. A higher cardiac output may be protective against mortality in patients with postcapillary PH.