Evaluation of functional status of donors before and after liver transplantation

Objective: The incidence of liver transplant in the world and Turkey is one of a growing major abdominal surgery. Since there are not enough cadaver donors, live donor transport rates are increasing and these donors are selected from completely healthy individuals. For this reason, it has become important to correctly evaluate and secure the donors before and after the surgery. The aim of this study was to compare the functional capacity, physical function, respiratory function, respiratory muscle strength, physical activity level, fatigue level and quality of life of living donors before and after liver transplantation. Methods: The study included 30 donors who were hospitalized at the Inönü University Liver Transplantation Institute. Functional capacity of donors evaluated with 6 Minute Walk Test (6MWT), physical functional status Physical Function Intensive Care Test (PFIT-s), pulmonary functions Pulmonary Function Test (PFT), respiratory muscle strength Maximal Inspiratory Pressure (MIP) - Maximal Expiratory Pressure (MEP), the level of physical activity was assessed by the International Physical Activity Questionnaire (IPAQ), the fatigue levels of the Checklist Individual Strenght questionnaire (CIS) and the quality of life with the SF-36 quality of life questionnaire. The measurements and questionnaires were assessed preoperatively and postoperatively on the 3rd day. Results: When preoperative and postoperative functional status of the liver donors were compared, it was determined that postoperative early functional capacity, physical function, respiratory function, respiratory muscle strength, physical activity level and quality of life decreased. On the other hand, fatigue levels increased compared to preoperative period (p <0.05). Conclusion: Functional status of donors is adversely affected in the early period after liver transplantation. It is thought that this study may be a guide to the long term follow-up of functional status after transplantation in live donors and the rehabilitation studies to evaluate the effect of exercise on these parameters.