If you haven't already done so, you should prepare an overnight bag with clothes and items that might be needed at the hospital to ensure a quick arrival to the transplant center. Leave valuables at home, such as jewelry. If you're receiving a deceased liver, you need to get to the hospital immediately, so we suggest you ask a relative or friend bring you these items after you've been dropped off at the hospital.
You’ll arrive a few hours before the scheduled surgery time. Your family will be allowed to accompany you in the pre-op area, where you’ll undergo a few preliminary tests to ensure you’re still in good condition to receive the transplant. These tests include blood tests, an EKG and a chest X-ray. You also will meet the anesthesiologist, who will ask you to sign a consent form to allow to be placed under anesthesia. The team will establish IV access. They will also place electrodes on your chest to monitor your heart’s activity. You’ll be allowed to spend some time with your family before being transferred to the operating room.
You’ll be brought into the operating room on a gurney, where the anesthesiologists will place you under general anesthesia. Once you’re asleep, the team will insert a tube in your throat that will connect to a machine that helps you breathe (ventilator). They will also insert a tube into your urethra (Foley catheter) to allow urine to drain during the long surgery, and a tube from your nose to your stomach (nasogastric) to drain the contents of your stomach. While the surgical team performs the operation, two anesthesiologists will monitor your breathing, heart rate, blood pressure, and other vital signals to make sure your body is not reacting poorly.