We describe the survival of children with acute liver failure (ALF), chronic liver disease (CLD), or acute-on-chronic liver failure (ACLF) with poor access to liver transplantation (LT). A retrospective cohort study of 42 patients <18 years of age was conducted in the Hospital Civil de Guadalajara "Dr. Juan I. Menchaca". The median age was 76 months; 57.1% were female, 40.5% presented with ALF, 35.7% with CLD, and 23.8% with ACLF. Also, 38.1% (16/42) presented liver disease of unknown etiology. Death occurred in 45.2%; 14.3% were transferred to another hospital, and none received LT. Mortality in ALF, CLD, and ACLF was 76%, 0%, and 60%, respectively. In the survival analysis, within the first 20 months after diagnosis, the mortality rate was greater than 50% with ALF. The importance of having referral programs that perform liver transplantation is highlighted by the poor prognosis of the patients, despite conservative treatment.
Keywords: acute; end-stage liver disease; liver diseases; liver failure.
Copyright © 2023 The Author(s). Published by Wolters Kluwer Health, Inc. on behalf of the European Society for Pediatric Gastroenterology, Hepatology, and Nutrition and the North American Society for Pediatric Gastroenterology, Hepatology, and Nutrition.