Comparison of Intraoperative Changes in Blood Glucose According to Model for End-stage Liver Disease Score During Living Donor Liver Transplantation

Background. Recipients of liver transplantation (LT) may experience disturbance of blood glucose balance, which is aggravated by various exogenous factors. The Model for End-stage Liver Disease (MELD) score is an indicator of the severity of pretransplantation liver disease. In this study, we investigated the role of the MELD score in intraoperative changes in blood glucose in patients undergoing living donor LT (LDLT). Methods. Perioperative data from 280 patients undergoing LDLT were reviewed, including glucose-related data. Intraoperatively, blood glucose levels were checked every hour, and the mean values at each phase of LDLT were calculated. Patients were divided into high and low MELD groups. An unpaired t-test and repeated measures analysis of variance (RMANOVA) were used in intergroup and intragroup comparisons of perioperative blood glucose. Results. The high MELD group consisted of 79 patients. Both the time sequential change during LDLT and the interaction between perioperative blood glucose and MELD score were significant (RMANOVA with multivariate adjustment; P < .05). Pretransplant blood glucose levels did not differ between the 2 groups, but the mean levels of blood glucose were lower and the incidence of hypoglycemia was higher in the high compared with the low MELD group during all phases of LDLT (P < .05). Conclusions. Blood glucose levels progressively increased during LDLT with an interaction with the MELD score. Patients with a high MELD score had low blood glucose levels and a greater incidence of intraoperative hypoglycemia. MELD score is a useful determinant of intraoperative blood glucose levels in LDLT patients.