natriuretic-peptide--brain and Biliary-Atresia

Severe portopulmonary hypertension (POPH) is a contraindication for liver transplantation (LT) because of the high risk of postoperative heart failure. The early detection of POPH is important for patients with biliary atresia (BA). Brain natriuretic peptide (BNP) is known to be correlated with liver fibrosis in patients with liver cirrhosis. The aim of this study was to elucidate the efficacy of BNP measurement for the follow-up of patients with BA. Thirty-two patients with BA were identified from September 2011 to December 2016. As indices of liver fibrosis/cirrhosis, APRI (P < .0001), FIB-4 (P < .0001), Child-Pugh score (P < .0001), IV collagen (P = .0005), and hyaluronic acid (P = .0291) had high or moderate correlations with BNP. Patients with splenomegaly, esophageal varices, liver fibrosis, and collateral veins had significantly higher BNP levels than those without. Patients diagnosed with POPH had significantly higher BNP levels in comparison with those patients without (P = .0068). In contrast, PELD/MELD scores showed an almost negligible correlation with the BNP level. LT was successful in 3 asymptomatic BA patients with POPH who had high BNP levels despite the low PELD/MELD scores. In conclusion, routine serum BNP surveillance can be easy to predict asymptomatic POPH. This may help to identify POPH before it reaches a stage that would contraindicate LT.

Topics: Adolescent; Adult; Asymptomatic Diseases; Biliary Atresia; Biomarkers; Child; Child, Preschool; Female; Follow-Up Studies; Humans; Hypertension, Portal; Hypertension, Pulmonary; Liver Transplantation; Male; Natriuretic Peptide, Brain; Retrospective Studies; Young Adult

To investigate the clinical significance of endothelin (ET), natriuretic peptides, and the renin-angiotensin-aldosterone system in pediatric liver transplantation, we measured plasma levels of ET, atrial and brain natriuretic peptides (ANP, BNP), aldosterone, and plasma renin activity in 18 patients (aged 0.5-12 yr; median 1 yr) undergoing living-related liver transplantation due to congenital biliary atresia and severe liver cirrhosis. Before transplantation, the plasma ET level (28.9 +/- 2.5 [mean +/- SEM] pg/mL) was increased compared with that of healthy children (10-18 pg/mL), but decreased during the anhepatic phase (22.5 +/- 1.6 pg/mL). It increased again after reperfusion and remained at high levels in the early postoperative period (postoperative day 3, 27.8 +/- 3.0 pg/mL). Plasma levels of ANP and BNP and aldosterone and plasma renin activity were also high before surgery. Plasma ANP and BNP did not change significantly during surgery. After transplantation, plasma BNP significantly increased, and plasma ANP tended to increase. Plasma aldosterone increased markedly during the anhepatic phase, although plasma renin activity decreased. After transplantation, plasma aldosterone and plasma renin activity both decreased to within normal levels. Mean arterial blood pressure increased gradually after reperfusion and surgery (postoperative day 3, 35.7 +/- 5.2% increase). No substantial differences in these variables occurred between the younger (< or = 1.0 yr, n = 9) and older patients (> 1.0 yr, n = 9). These results suggest that ET production in the cirrhotic liver is augmented and ET, natriuretic peptides, and the renin-angiotensin-aldosterone system all play some role in the circulatory regulation during perioperative periods of pediatric liver transplantation.

Topics: Aldosterone; Atrial Natriuretic Factor; Biliary Atresia; Blood Pressure; Child; Child, Preschool; Endothelins; Female; Humans; Infant; Liver Cirrhosis; Liver Transplantation; Male; Natriuretic Peptide, Brain; Nerve Tissue Proteins; Postoperative Period; Renin; Renin-Angiotensin System; Reperfusion; Tissue Donors