Malignancy does not dictate the hypercoagulable state following liver resection.

BACKGROUND: A hypercoagulable state following intra-abdominal malignant resections has been reported. Whether this is because of the operation or the malignancy, a known cause of hypercoagulability, remains unclear. We determined if malignancy status affected the coagulation profile following liver resection by assessing perioperative thromboelastogram (TEG) values.

METHODS: Retrospective review of prospectively collected TEG values in patients who received a liver resection was conducted. Values among patients with benign or malignant disease were compared.

RESULTS: Fourteen and 63 patients were resected for benign and malignant disease, respectively. No significant differences in TEG values existed between the groups. Combining the groups, patients developed a relative hypercoagulable state postoperatively with decreased R-times (P < .05), although median values remained within the normal range.

CONCLUSION: Following liver resection, no differences in TEG values existed between patients with benign and malignant disease; the relative hypercoagulable state is more likely driven by postoperative coagulopathy rather than the malignancy status of the patient.