deamino-arginine-vasopressin and End-Stage-Liver-Disease

Patients with end-stage liver disease are often hyponatremic due to multiple physiological processes associated with hepatic failure. For severely hyponatremic patients undergoing liver transplantation, intraoperative management of serum sodium concentration ([Na]s) is challenging. [Na]s tends to increase during transplantation by the administration of fluids with higher sodium concentration than the patient's [Na]s. An overly rapid increase in [Na]s (>1 mEq·L·hour) is difficult to avoid and increases the risk of serious perioperative complications. We report the successful use of intravenous desmopressin to reverse an overly rapid rise in [Na]s during living donor liver transplantation.

Topics: Deamino Arginine Vasopressin; End Stage Liver Disease; Hemostatics; Humans; Hyponatremia; Intraoperative Care; Liver Transplantation; Living Donors; Risk Factors; Sodium