SURGICAL RISK IN ALCOHOLIC CIRRHOTIC POSTMENOPAUSAL WOMEN - PROGNOSTIC VALUE OF LEVELS OF HORMONES

Because increased prolactin levels and hyperprolactinemia in the presence of encephalopathy in males with cirrhosis (alcohol-induced cirrhosis in particular) are associated with statistically increased mortality, we have examined pre-surgical levels of prolactin and other hormones, as well as the presence of encephalopathy, in 12 postmenopausal women with end-stage alcohol-induced cirrhosis in relation to liver transplant survival. Levels of estradiol were significantly lower, while luteinizing hormone (LH) and 17-hydroxyprogesterone as well as the ratio of estradiol to testosterone were significantly higher prior to transplantation among the women who survived, compared with non-survivors. A similar pattern was seen for transplant candidates who died before transplantation as compared with still-living candidates. These findings suggest that pre-operative levels of sex steroids and pituitary hormones may have prognostic value in alcoholic cirrhotic postmenopausal women undergoing liver transplantation.