Prognostic impact of postoperative low platelet count after liver transplantation

Background The positive impact of platelets has been recently implicated in liver transplantation (LT). The aim of this study was to determine the risk factors for graft loss and mortality after LT, focusing on perioperative platelet counts. Methods We reviewed all deceased donor LT from 2000 to 2012 and enrolled 975 consecutive recipients. The risk factors for graft loss and mortality were analyzed by multivariate analysis, using Cox's regression model. Results Using cutoff values acquired by receiver operating characteristics curve analysis, multivariate analyses determined that viral hepatitis C (hazard ratio [HR]=1.32), donor age >40 (HR=1.33), higher peak serum alanine aminotransferase (HR=1.01), reoperation within 30 days (HR=1.51), and platelet count