To explore the regional changes of cerebral function in patients with liver cirrhosis before and 1 month after liver transplantation (LT).

A total of 11 patients with liver cirrhosis who underwent LT in Lingnan Hospital, the Third Affiliated Hospital of Sun Yat-sen University between September 2012 and September 2013 were enrolled in this prospective study (liver cirrhosis group), and at the same period 11 healthy subjects were enrolled in control group. The informed consents of all patients were obtained and the local ethical committee approval was received. Subjects in liver cirrhosis group and control group were all males, with an average age of (49±9) and (48±8) years old, respectively. Changes of regional homogeneity (ReHo) of the cerebral function in patients of liver cirrhosis group before and 1 month after LT was studied by using resting-state functional MRI (rs-fMRI). ReHo values were compared between both groups by t test.

Compared with control group, ReHo values of right middle occipital gyrus, left middle temporal gyrus, right precuneus/posterior cingulate gyrus, left inferior parietal lobule/postcentral gyrus in liver cirrhosis group significantly decreased before LT (t=-4.65, -4.56, -4.41, -5.87; P<0.05), and those of left middle temporal gyrus, posterior cingulate gyrus, right superior parietal lobule/precuneus also significantly decreased 1 month after LT (t=-4.42, -5.23, -4.41; P<0.05). The ReHo value of middle cingulate gyrus 1 month after LT was significantly higher than that before LT (t=5.24, P<0.05).

Cerebral dysfunction is observed in patients with liver cirrhosis before LT, and it can change within 1 month after LT, but cannot get a full recovery, which may be related to some irreversible injuries of patients with liver cirrhosis.