Addiction

Why can’t my patient with alcohol-related liver disease be placed on the liver transplant list for at least 6 months after his last drink?

FA Manian MD, MPH, , , , , , , , Leave a comment

Although many centers impose a 6-month sobriety rule before patients can be listed for liver transplant, this rule has been increasingly challenged based on the results of more recent studies and ethical issues. 1-10

The argument for enforcing a 6-month sobriety rule is in part based on earlier studies (often small and/or single center) that reported an association between less than 6 months of sobriety before liver transplantation and relapse.5-6 Another frequently cited reason for postponing liver transplantation is to allow the liver enough time to recover from adverse effect of recent alcohol consumption before assessing the need for transplantation.6

Arguments against the 6-month sobriety rule include the very limited life-expectancy (often 3 months or less) of patients with severe alcohol-related liver disease who do not respond to medical therapy and increasing number of studies supporting earlier transplantation particularly in selected patients (eg, severe acute alcoholic hepatitis [SAAH], acute-on-chronic liver failure [ACLF]).1,7,9,10,

Further supporting a less stringent transplantation rule are a low rate (about 4%) of death or graft loss in alcohol-related liver disease patients who experience a relapse and lack of significant differences in survival between non-relapsers, occasional drinkers and problem drinkers.1 A 2019 multicenter, prospective study in the U.S. also found that early liver transplant for alcohol-related  liver disease was associated with comparable patient and graft survival as those without alcohol-related liver disease at 5 years post-transplant but increased risk of death at 10 years. 10

Bonus Pearl: Did you know that alcohol-related liver disease is now the most common diagnosis among patients undergoing liver transplantation in the U.S.? 10

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References

  1. Obed A, Stern S, Jarrad A, et al. Six month abstinence rule for liver transplantation in severe alcoholic liver disease patients. W J Gastroenterol 2015; 21:4423-26. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4394109/
  2. Bramstedt KA, Jabbour N. When alcohol abstinence criteria create ethical dilemmas for the liver transplant team. J Med Ethics 2006;32:263-65. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2579412/
  3. Kollmann D, Rashoul-Rockenschaub S, Steiner I, et al. Good outcome after liver transplantation for ALD without a 6 months abstinence rule prior to transplantation including post-tranplantation CDT monitoring for alcohol relapse assement— a retrospective study. Transplant International 2016;29:559-67. https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/epdf/10.1111/tri.12756
  4. Osorio RW, Ascher NL, Avery M, et al. Predicting recidivism after orthoptic liver transplantation for alcoholic liver disease. Hepatoloty 1994;20:105-110. https://aasldpubs.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/epdf/10.1002/hep.1840200117
  5. Carbonneau M, Jensen LA, Bain VG. Alcohol use while on the liver transplant waiting list: a single-center experience. Liver Transplantation 2010;16:91-97. https://aasldpubs.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10.1002/lt.21957
  6. Harnanan A. Challenging the “six-month sober” rule for liver transplants in Canada. McGill Journal of Law and Health. Dec 12, 2019. https://mjlh.mcgill.ca/2019/12/12/challenging-the-six-month-sober-rule-for-liver-transplants-in-canada/
  7. Lee BP, Mehta N, Platt L, et al. Outcomes of early liver transplantation for patients with severe alcoholic hepatitis. Gastroenterology 2018;155:422-430.e1. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6460480/
  8. Rice JP, Lee BP. Early liver transplantation for alcohol-associated liver disease: need for engagement and education of all stakeholders. Hepatol Communications 2019;3: 1019-21. https://aasldpubs.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/pdf/10.1002/hep4.1385
  9. Lee BP, Vittinghoff E, Pletcher MJ, et al. Medicaid policy and liver transplant for alcohol-related liver disease. Hepatology; November 8, 2019 https://aasldpubs.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/pdf/10.1002/hep.31027
  10. Lee BP, Vittinghoff E, Dodge JL, et al. National trends and long-term outcomes of liver transplant for alcohol-associated liver disease in the United States. JAMA Intern Med 2019;179:340-48. https://jamanetwork.com/journals/jamainternalmedicine/fullarticle/2720757?widget=personalizedcontent&previousarticle=2720750

Contributed in part by Nneka Ufere, MD, GI Division, Massachusetts General Hospital, Boston, MA

Why can’t my patient with alcohol-related liver disease be placed on the liver transplant list for at least 6 months after his last drink?

What’s the connection between lemon juice and disseminated candidiasis in my patient with illicit IV drug use?

FA Manian MD, MPH, , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , Leave a comment

Lemon juice is often used by IV drug users to help dissolve poorly water soluble street drugs, such as brown heroin or crack-cocaine, and may serve as a vehicle for Candida albicans infection. 1-3

Contamination of lemon juice (either from wild lemons or from the plastic containers) is thought to occur from either the skin and/or oropharynx of the user.1  Other fruit juices such as orange juice as well as raspberry syrup have been implicated as a source of disseminated candidiasis in IV drug users.4

Experimental inoculation of lemons with small numbers of C. albicans has demonstrated rapid growth of the organism at room temperature resulting in inadvertent injection of a large inoculum size. 2 Once inoculated directly into the blood stream, C. albicans disseminates and can present in many ways, including skin lesions, ocular lesions/endophthalmitis, and osteoarticular infections (eg, costochondral, hip joint, and vertebral infections).1  

So it is advisable to not only ask about what recreational drug is being injected but also what it is injected with!

Bonus Pearl: Did you know that although lemon juice is an excellent growth medium for C. albicans, it has bactericidal properties against Staphylococcus aureus and Pseudomonas aeruginosa? 1

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References

  1. Bisbe J, Miro JM, Latorre X, et al. Disseminated candidiasis in addicts who use brown heroin: report of 83 cases and review. Clin Infect Dis 1992;15:910-23. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/1457662
  2. Newton-John HGF, Wise K, Looke DFM. Role of the lemon in disseminated candidiasis of heroin abusers. Med j Aust 1984;140:780-81. https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/abs/10.5694/j.1326-5377.1984.tb132597.x?sid=nlm%3Apubmed
  3. Shankland GS, Richardson MD. Source of infection in candida endophthalmitis in drug addicts. Br J Ophthalmol 1986;292:1106-7. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC1954783/pdf/702.pdf
  4. Scheidegger C, Pietrzak J, Frei R. Methadone diluted with contaminated orange juice or raspberry syrup as a potential source of disseminated candidiasis in drug abusers. Eur J Clin Microbiol Infect Dis 1993;12:229-31. https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/BF01967124
What’s the connection between lemon juice and disseminated candidiasis in my patient with illicit IV drug use?