The Bridge to Life Highlights study is being presented as a late-breaking oral clinical trial at the International Society of Liver Transplantation (ILTS) 2026 International Congress in Geneva, Switzerland, May 6-9, 2026.
DULUTH, Ga., May 11, 2026 /PRNewswire/ — A first-of-its-kind global multicenter study has established the first international framework for pediatric liver transplantation (PLT), providing a long-awaited framework for morbidity, complications, graft survival and outcomes. recipients in various pediatric transplant populations around the world.
Presented as a late-breaking oral clinical trial at the International Society of Liver Transplantation (ILTS) 2026 International Congress in Geneva, Switzerland, this landmark analysis addresses one of the most important unmet needs in pediatric transplantation: lack of globally standardized outcome criteria to guide graft selection, risk stratification and post-transplant quality assessment. For more details, click here for the summary.
Led by Sapana Verma, MD, PhD, and under the supervision of Prof. Andrea Schlegel, Cleveland Clinic, the study analyzed primary pediatric liver transplants performed between 2000 and 2024 at nine high-volume transplant centers spanning North America, Asia, Europe, South America and Africa/Middle East.
“Globally accepted reference standards for pediatric liver transplantation are sorely lacking,” said Dr Verma. “Our goal was to establish international reference standards for morbidity and survival after pediatric liver transplantation and to develop a data-driven graft selection decision framework in pediatric subgroups heterogeneous.
The reference cohort had significantly lower major morbidity, fewer renal, vascular and biliary complications, as well as shorter duration of hospitalization and intensive care. Importantly, the benchmarking model allowed differentiation of outcomes in heterogeneous pediatric populations, creating a scalable platform for overall quality assessment and analysis of risk-adjusted outcomes.
The researchers plan to extend their work to a multicenter cohort of 10,000 recipients in order to establish definitive global reference standards and validate the thresholds of results according to age, weight, etiology of the disease liver disease, transplant type and combined risk profiles of recipients.
“This work is very important because pediatric transplantation has never had the standardized benchmarks that exist in adult transplantation,” said Don Webber, president and CEO of Bridge to Life Ltd. “As the field advances toward accurate graft assessment, viability assessment, and optimized preservation strategies such as hypothermic oxygen perfusion (HOPE), it becomes essential to have robust reference standards. These standards of “Reference helps define not only what success is, but also how we improve access to safe transplantation for more pediatric patients around the world.”
Research involving Bridge to Life’s VitaSmartâ„¢ Hypothermic Oxygen Perfusion (HOPE) System demonstrated that HOPE was safe and effective in pediatric liver transplantation, supporting the growing role of machine perfusion and computer-guided decision-making. viability in this highly specialized population.
As pediatric transplantation evolves toward more individualized graft selection and broader use of advanced preservation technologies, these newly established reference standards provide an essential foundation for the next generation of clinical decisions. While benchmarking defines what is achievable, advanced preservation strategies such as HOPE offer a promising avenue for bringing high-risk transplants closer to benchmarking results.
À propos de Bridge to Life™ Ltd
Bridge to Life™ Ltd is a global innovator in organ preservation technologies and solutions, offering leading products such as Belzer UW®EasiSlush® and the VitaSmart™ Hypothermic Oxygenated Perfusion System. With a strong focus on product quality, innovation and accessibility, the company serves and partners with leading transplant centers and organ procurement organizations around the world.
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