Implementation of a Novel Multi‐Center Pediatric Liver Transplant Collaborative Network
8 affiliations
- 1Hillman Center for Pediatric Transplantation Thomas E. Starzl Transplantation Institute, UPMC Children's Hospital of Pittsburgh Pittsburgh Pennsylvania USA
- 2Advent Health Transplant Institution, Adventhealth for Children Orlando Florida USA
- 3University of Virginia Medical Center Charlottesville Virginia USA
- 4Department of Surgery Hospital for Sick Children Toronto Ontario Canada
- 5Guidry and East LLC Fayetteville Arkansas USA
- 6AtriumHealth, Wake Forest School of Medicine Charlotte North Carolina USA
- 7UPMC Children's Hospital of Pittsburgh Pittsburgh Pennsylvania USA
- 8Nationwide Children's Hospital Columbus Ohio USA
Abstract
Background: Initiation or augmentation of pediatric liver transplant programs in the United States faces challenges of limited expertise, small volumes, and regional variation in access to care. PACH launched a prospective plan of pediatric liver program development at two sites (VAUV and FLFH) with the goals of comprehensive multidisciplinary program support, consistent surgical leadership from one team, consensus protocol development, and standardization of perioperative and postoperative care, and comprehensive long‐term follow‐up care plans. A third center, NCCM, was launched in June 2024.
Methods: Between January 2016 and December 31, 2024, 140 children received pediatric liver transplants at one of the collaborative sites. A total of 215 PLT were performed at PACH during the same period.
Results: Patient and graft survival were 94.4% and 93.2% respectively, with current follow‐up of 1674 ± 1037 days. Overall patient demographics, complications, and patient outcomes were similar among all institutions.
Conclusions: A paradigm of systematically extending center experience directly to facilitate safe and high‐quality pediatric liver program establishment has been demonstrated, with the additional benefit of increased split liver graft utilization benefiting both adults and children. The success of this model has implications for optimizing pediatric liver transplant care in the United States.
Related
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- Donor–recipient Hepatitis B serological patterns and post-transplant HBV events in pediatric living donor liver transplantation: a single-center retrospective cohort with a nested case series
- Implementation of an antimicrobial stewardship program in a multicenter neonatal intensive care unit collaborative: a mixed-methods staff resource needs evaluation
- Real-time wearable detection of respiratory infections in pediatric transplant households
- Diagnostic Performance of 99mTc-MAG3 Renal Scintigraphy for Acute Tubular Necrosis and Acute Rejection in Kidney Transplant Recipients with Suspected Graft Dysfunction During the First 90 Days: A Single-Center, Biopsy-Referenced Retrospective Study
BibTeX
@article{soltys2026implementation,
title = {{Implementation of a Novel Multi‐Center Pediatric Liver Transplant Collaborative Network}},
author = {Kyle A. Soltys and Regino Gonzalez‐Peralta and Robert Teaster and Nicolas Goldarecena and Frank DiPaola and Shawn Pelletier and Kenneth Brayman and Michael Angelis and L. Thomas Chin and Ajai Khanna and Noel Thompson and Rakesh Sindhi and Barry Friedman and David Levi and Daniela Damian and Raj Aneja and Diane Hupp and Sara Rasmussen and George Mazariegos},
journal = {Pediatric Transplantation},
year = {2026},
month = nov,
doi = {10.1111/petr.70530},
url = {https://doi.org/10.1111/petr.70530},
note = {CC BY 4.0},
}
RIS
TY - JOUR
TI - Implementation of a Novel Multi‐Center Pediatric Liver Transplant Collaborative Network
AU - Kyle A. Soltys
AU - Regino Gonzalez‐Peralta
AU - Robert Teaster
AU - Nicolas Goldarecena
AU - Frank DiPaola
AU - Shawn Pelletier
AU - Kenneth Brayman
AU - Michael Angelis
AU - L. Thomas Chin
AU - Ajai Khanna
AU - Noel Thompson
AU - Rakesh Sindhi
AU - Barry Friedman
AU - David Levi
AU - Daniela Damian
AU - Raj Aneja
AU - Diane Hupp
AU - Sara Rasmussen
AU - George Mazariegos
PY - 2026
DA - 2026/11/03
JO - Pediatric Transplantation
DO - 10.1111/petr.70530
UR - https://doi.org/10.1111/petr.70530
AB - Background: Initiation or augmentation of pediatric liver transplant programs in the United States faces challenges of limited expertise, small volumes, and regional variation in access to care. PACH launched a prospective plan of pediatric liver program development at two sites (VAUV and FLFH) with the goals of comprehensive multidisciplinary program support, consistent surgical leadership from one team, consensus protocol development, and standardization of perioperative and postoperative care, and comprehensive long‐term follow‐up care plans. A third center, NCCM, was launched in June 2024. Methods: Between January 2016 and December 31, 2024, 140 children received pediatric liver transplants at one of the collaborative sites. A total of 215 PLT were performed at PACH during the same period. Results: Patient and graft survival were 94.4% and 93.2% respectively, with current follow‐up of 1674 ± 1037 days. Overall patient demographics, complications, and patient outcomes were similar among all institutions. Conclusions: A paradigm of systematically extending center experience directly to facilitate safe and high‐quality pediatric liver program establishment has been demonstrated, with the additional benefit of increased split liver graft utilization benefiting both adults and children. The success of this model has implications for optimizing pediatric liver transplant care in the United States.
SN - 1397-3142
SN - 1399-3046
ER -