Liver surgeries are complicated and major operations. The exact time depends on the type of liver resection and risk to life is around ~5% for major liver resections. The operation, on an average, takes about 4-6 hours. Usually patients are shifted to Intensive Care Unit (ICU ) or the High Dependency Unit (HDU) after the operation and then shifted to ward on the next day. On some occasions, the anaesthetic doctor may want you to be on the ventilator machine to help with your breathing for a few hours. Patients are allowed orally on the same day or the first day after the operation and most patients are able to eat a normal diet in about 3 or 4 days after the operation. The average hospital stay, after the operation, for most patients is around 4-8 days. 

LIVER RESECTION (HEPATECTOMY)

The most common surgery done over liver is a liver resection (Hepatectomy) which involves removal of a part or whole of a diseased liver. Surgeons mostly perform a partial liver resection to remove a cancerous, precancerous or benign (noncancerous) tumor and even as part of liver donation for living donor liver transplant. Depending upon the part of the liver removed liver resection can be of following types:

Right hepatectomy

Left Hepatectomy

Left Lateral Hepatectomy

Right posterior sectionectomy

Right trisegmentectomy

Left trisegmentectomy

Monosegmentectomy

Segment I or Isolated Caudate Liver resection

Central hepatectomy

Non -Anatomical Liver Resection

Sometimes along with liver resection reconstruction of biliary drainage (Hepaticojejunostomy) may also be required. 

CONDITIONS REQUIRING LIVER RESECTION

Hepatocellular carcinoma (primary liver cancer)

Cholangiocarcinoma (primary liver cancer)

Metastatic colorectal cancer (secondary liver cancer)

Gall bladder cancer

Gallstones in the intrahepatic ducts — the bile ducts inside your liver.

Adenoma (primary benign tumor)

Liver cystadenoma, hemangioma or liver cyst (If symptomatic)

POTENTIAL COMPLICATIONS AFTER LIVER SURGERY

Bleeding

Liver is an organ full of blood and there is a risk of bleeding while cutting the liver. We use special techniques to cut the liver which reduces the risk significantly. We do not give blood transfusion most of the time as bleeding is not much during the operation.

Bile leak 

Bile can leak from small bile ducts on the cut surface of the liver. This complication occurs infrequently. If it happens it settles most of the time without any further therapy. 

Liver failure

Liver failure may occur if the amount of liver left behind is not enough. This is a complication for which supportive therapy is given until the liver function recovers. 

Chest infection

There is a risk of this complication as patients may not be able to breathe deeply due to pain in the operation wound which has been reduced with laparoscopy .

Other infections

There is a risk of infection developing within the abdomen, in the wound or in the urine. Most of these can be treated with antibiotics.

Other complications

The following complications can happen after any major operations and are true for liver surgery as well.

Heart attacks

Pulmonary embolism (clot in the lung).

These are serious complications which can lead to death.