Persistent unilateral right diaphragmatic palsy following liver transplantation

Subhash, H S; Chen, John W C; John, Libby; Bowden, Jeffery J; Sajkov, Dimitar; Frith, Peter

doi:10.5694/j.1326-5377.2010.tb03406.x

Topics

To the Editor: We describe two liver transplant patients who presented with unexplained dyspnoea and were subsequently found to have unilateral right diaphragmatic palsy, an uncommon complication of orthotopic liver transplantation.1-3

1 Department of Respiratory Medicine, Flinders Medical Centre and University, Adelaide, SA.
2 SA Liver Transplant Unit, Flinders Medical Centre and University, Adelaide, SA.

Correspondence: hssubhashcmc@hotmail.com

1. McAlister VC, Grant DR, Roy A, et al. Right phrenic nerve injury in orthotopic liver transplant. Transplantation 1993; 55: 826-830.
2. Gurakar A, Hassanein T, Van Thiel DH. Right diaphragmatic paralysis following orthotopic liver transplantation [abstract]. J Okla State Med Assoc 1995; 88: 149-153.
3. Manczur TI, Greenough A, Rafferty GF, et al. Diaphragmatic dysfunction after pediatric orthotopic liver transplantation. Transplantation 2002; 73: 228-232.
4. Mehrabi A, Mood ZA, Fonouni H, et al. Single-center experience of 500 liver transplants using the modified piggyback technique by Belghiti. Liver Transpl 2009; 15: 466-474.
5. Laroche CM, Mier AK, Moxham J, Green M. Diaphragm strength in patients with recent hemidiaphragm paralysis. Thorax 1988; 43: 170-174.

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