Laparoscopic live donor left lateral sectionectomy is safe and feasible for pediatric living donor liver transplantation

Background/Aims: Compared to the open method of left lateral sectionectomy, the laparoscopic method has demonstrated shorter hospital stay with less bleeding and complications and is becoming the gold standard procedure. We report our experience with 15 laparoscopic left lateral sectionectomies performed during PLDLTs from May 2008. Methodology: From May 2008 to April 2010, there were 15 cases where laparoscopic left lateral sectionectomy was performed for donor hepatectomy. All cases were performed by a single surgeon. Results: The mean size of the actual graft was 248.8±52.8mL (range 150-350). The mean operation time was 331.3±63.1 minutes (range 220-480), the mean blood loss was 410.0±71.2mL (range 250-500) and the mean warm ischemic time was 5.8±1.6 minutes (range 4-10). The mean time to oral intake was 2.0±0.3 days (range 1-3) and the mean hospital stay was 7.1±0.8 days (range 6-10). There were no complications or deaths among donors postoperatively. Conclusions: We believe it is a safe and reproducible procedure and an especially useful procedure for young mother donors who desire small wounds and rapid recovery.