Department of Surgery

Division of Solid Organ Transplantation

Procedures

Liver Transplant Surgery

Transplant Surgery

Guide to Liver Transplant • What Does the Liver Do? • Liver Diseases • What is a Liver Transplant? • Is a Transplant Right For You? • The Transplant Process • Lodging & Accommodations • Resources • General Information for Transplant Patients

You'll be contacted when a liver is available. If your new liver is from a living donor, both you and the donor will be in surgery at the same time. If your new liver is from a person who has recently died, your surgery starts as soon as the new liver arrives at the hospital. The liver must be transplanted within 12 to 18 hours. Learn more about deceased donor organ procurement.

The surgery can take from 4 to 14 hours. You will be given general anesthesia. While the surgeon removes your diseased liver, other doctors prepare the new liver. The surgeon makes an incision in the upper part of your abdomen and then disconnects your diseased liver from your bile ducts and blood vessels before removing it. The blood that flows into your liver will be blocked or sent through a machine to return to the rest of your body. The surgeon will put the healthy liver in place and reconnect it to your bile ducts and blood vessels. Your blood will then flow into your new liver.

More About the Transplant Process

1. Evaluation
2. Waiting for an Organ
3. Transplant Surgery
4. Recovery
5. Long-term Management