Liver donor with hepatitis c virus false positive in negative recipient. A case report

Introduction and Objectives

The growing disparity that exists between the number of available donors and patients on the waiting list, transplant centers have presented initiatives to take into account patients diagnosed with hepatitis C virus (HCV), the objective of liver transplantation being the extension of the patient's life.

Materials and Patients

62-year-old female patient, with a diagnosis of liver cirrhosis diagnosed in 2012, secondary to primary biliary cholangitis (PBC). Evaluated in August 2023, a clinical approach was performed identifying uncontrolled liver cirrhosis, reporting in the last year she had three episodes of hepatic encephalopathy West Haven (WH) II and III, plus two events of upper gastrointestinal bleeding secondary to grade III esophageal varices performing 3-bundle variceal ligation, prognostic scales were calculated, Child Pugh B 8 points, MELD NA 15 POINTS, biochemistry: TORCH negative, profile for non-reactive hepatitis A, B and C viruses, non-reactive human immunodeficiency virus (HIV), positive PPD purified protein derivative skin test, evaluated by infectious disease who reports that he has latent tuberculosis with a plan to start treatment. Liver sonographic ultrasound (USG) was performed, reporting chronic liver disease, ascites, no portal hypertension, magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) of the liver: reported diffuse chronic liver disease, no evidence of tumor activity, ascites, decompensated portal hypertension, panendoscopy reported Dagradi III esophageal varices plus ligation of 3 variceal bundles. The liver transplant protocol is completed and presented to the liver transplant (LT) committee, referring the patient to be enlisted to be a liver recipient.

Results

Anti HCV 1.40 S/40 CO= REACTIVE Viral load of hepatitis c virus: RNA not detected.

Conclusions

In the following case, the donor presents positive antibodies for hepatitis C virus, a viral load is done reporting undetectable RNA, considering a false positive result, it is emphasized that if positive, there is no contraindication for the transplant, since previous studies have shown results similar to those of organ transplantation from HCV negative donors.

Ethics statement: Protection of people and animals: The authors declare that no experiments have been carried out on humans or animals for this research. Data confidentiality: The authors declare that no patient data appear in this article. Right to privacy and informed consent: The authors declare that no patient data appears in this article.

Funding This research did not receive any specific grant from funding agencies in the public, commercial, or not-for-profit sectors.

Declaration of interests: None.