Micro-LT: Microcirculation and Liver Transplantation
Research type
Research Study
Full title
An observational cohort study of the effects of anaemia and blood transfusion upon the microcirculation and tissue oxygenation in liver transplantation
IRAS ID
163390
Contact name
Daniel Martin
Contact email
Sponsor organisation
University College London
Clinicaltrials.gov Identifier
Z6364106/2014/10/64, UCL Data Protection Registration
Duration of Study in the UK
0 years, 8 months, 0 days
Research summary
Liver transplantation surgery is an operation to remove a diseased or damaged liver from a patient and replacing it with a healthy one. Patients with liver disease are considered for transplantation if it is highly likely that their lifespan will be shortened due to liver disease, or quality of life so poor as to be intolerable, and that they have at least a 50% chance of surviving for at least five years post transplant with an acceptable quality of life. In the UK in 2011-2012 726 liver transplants were carried out.
Liver disease affects many other body systems, and patients frequently have a low blood count (anaemia) due to their liver disease and / or malnutrition. Bleeding during liver transplant surgery is very common and the majority of patients require a blood transfusion during the operation. It has been shown that patients who are anaemic and those who receive blood transfusions have worse outcomes than those who are not, or do not receive blood transfusions.
This study aims to study the microcirculation, the small blood vessels through which the blood flows to the organs of the body, during liver transplant surgery. This shall be an observational study, using a hand-held microscope device beneath the tongue and a non-invasive probe placed on the hand. In 24 patients undergoing liver transplantation, the effect of anaemia and bleeding shall be examined, as well as the effect of blood transfusion upon the blood flow within the microcirculation.
This will be the first time that such measurements have been taken during this operation. This will allow clinicians looking after these patients before and during liver transplantation to have a better understanding of the effects of anaemia and transfusion, providing more information upon which to base their clinical management decisions.REC name
East of England - Essex Research Ethics Committee
REC reference
14/EE/1275
Date of REC Opinion
16 Dec 2014
REC opinion
Favourable Opinion