In general, transplant surgery is a major operation performed by a team that includes transplant surgeons, anesthesiologists, nurses, and operating room and anesthesia technicians. At least fifteen people are working directly in the operating room to perform a liver transplant successfully.

After performing general anesthesia, an anesthesiologist will insert a special catheter into large arteries through the neck, which will remain in place for several days after the operation so that it can be used to inject injectable solutions, blood and medications. Do not worry about the urinary catheter and a tube inside your nose or other connections that are connected to you, because they will all remove at the time that you wouldn’t need them anymore. During the surgery, the body will cover with a warm blanket to prevent from temperature dropping.

After washing the abdomen, the surgeon will begin the surgery with making an incision in the upper abdomen. The reason for this shape of incision is that the liver is located behind the ribs; therefore, the surgeon has to make a large incision in abdomen for convenience during the operation and use a special device to be able to see the liver well and control its arteries. In the next step, the surgeon will block the entrance and exit of the liver and remove the liver from donor’s body.

At the same time, another team is preparing a liver transplant. In the next step, the donor’s liver is removed from the ice and the preservative solution and enters the recipient abdomen for transplantation. After vascular transplants are completed, the new liver will begin to work, and after ensuring that the transplanted liver is functioning properly and the bleeding has stopped, the incision is sutured. Depending on the condition, the sutures on the skin can be non-absorbable, absorbable, or metal punch, which will be removed after three to four weeks. Transplant surgery takes an average of about six hours. It has to mention that during the surgery, the liver and gallbladder are removed from the body forever, and instead a whole new liver is transplanted, and in some people, especially children, part of a liver with no gallbladder is transplanted to prevent further problems.

After the surgery, the patient will be transferred directly to the Transplant Intensive Care Unit, which, in addition to the best and most modern medical facilities and equipment, has an outstanding and well-trained team of intensive care nurses. An artificial respiration tube may be inserted into mouth as needed. Be as calm as possible and endure the circumstances. Nurses will try to minimize your discomfort during this period by prescribing painkillers and sedatives.