Journal of the American College of Surgeons
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Liver transplantation (LT) is the preferred treatment for early hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) in select patients. Differences in outcomes after LT have been previously described between recipient races, but the role of donor race is not well defined. This study sought to examine the effect of donor-recipient race-matching on overall survival after liver transplantation for HCC in African-American patients (AA). ⋯ African-American HCC patients undergoing liver transplantation experienced significantly improved overall survival when the donor race matched the recipient race. Donor-recipient race-matching remained an independent predictor of improved survival after adjusting for comorbidities and disease characteristics. Race-matching should be considered in the process of organ allocation because it may affect long-term survival in African-American HCC patients.
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A single-dose (150 mg/kg) of valproic acid (VPA) has been shown to decrease brain lesion size and improve neurologic recovery in preclinical models of traumatic brain injury (TBI). However, the longer-term (30 days) impact of single-dose VPA treatment after TBI has not been well evaluated. ⋯ Administration of a single dose of VPA (150 mg/kg) can decrease neural apoptosis, inflammation, and degenerative changes, and promote neural plasticity at 30 days after TBI. In addition, VPA acts, in part, via regulation of nuclear factor-κB and IκBα pathways.