Transplant Hepatologist - Iowa City, IA

What is Transplant Hepatology (Liver Transplant Medicine)?

Transplant hepatology is a specialty that studies and treats advanced liver diseases that require liver transplants. Transplant hepatologists evaluate liver transplant candidates and provide post-transplant care, including managing complications that hinder liver recovery and function. While transplant hepatologists do not perform transplant surgery, they help ensure that a liver transplant is successful by tending to various aspects of the entire transplant process.

Some conditions which a transplant hepatologist may treat include:

Acute liver failure (life-threatening liver injury from infection or toxins)
Chronic liver failure from genetic, autoimmune, and other liver diseases causing cirrhosis (liver scarring) and liver destruction
Hepatocellular carcinoma (liver cancer)

Prior to a patient's liver transplantation, transplant hepatologists prescribe treatments to manage the symptoms of the patient's liver condition. For fluid retention resulting from a malfunctioning liver, transplant hepatologists may provide special diet plans, drainage of excess fluid through a needle, and diuretic medications. Other pre-transplant symptoms a transplant hepatologist may address include gastrointestinal bleeding or cognitive malfunction caused by a damaged liver, known as hepatic encephalopathy.

Liver transplants are either partial or full replacements for a patient's diseased liver. Each transplant carries a risk of the receiving patient being vulnerable to infection and other complications. If a donated liver is rejected, a patient may need a second liver transplant, or the patient's condition will progressively worsen. Transplant hematologists can mitigate and treat disorders that arise after a transplant, such as:

Immunosuppression
Infectious diseases
Surgical complications (such as blood clotting and bile leakage)

Transplant hepatologists may collaborate with hepatologists, organ transplant surgeons, endocrinologists, and other specialists to assist patients through the liver transplantation process.