Use of a branch patch with the cystic artery in living-related liver transplantation

Technical aspects in living-related liver transplantation are still under debate: the main pitfall is the arterial reconstruction due to the small diameter and the discrepancy between stumps, with subsequential increased risk of arterial thrombosis. The gold standard is the microsurgical technique, that reports the lowest risk of thrombosis, but it is a time consuming procedure requiring a long training. Our method of choice reconstructing hepatic artery in right lobe is the use of the cystic artery as a branch patch with the recipient hepatic artery by loop magnification, saving time and with a low incidence of hepatic artery thrombosis. © Blackwell Munksgaard, 2004.