The unreliability of the lidocaine/monoethylglycinexylidide test for assessment of liver donors.

The serum monoethylglycinexylidide (MEGX) level 15 min (t15) after i.v. administration of lidocaine (1 mg/kg) in liver donors was retrospectively correlated with graft outcome and early hepatic function. Among the 35 orthotopic liver transplants studied, 4 recipients had to be retransplanted within 10 days post-OLT because of early graft nonfunction or dysfunction, and 3 recipients died, with a median (range) donor MEGX t15 (ng/ml) of 100 (86-119) and 169 (146-182), respectively. The remaining 28 OLT patients living with functioning grafts had a donor MEGX of 87 (18-245). No significant correlations could be found between donor MEGX t15 and recipient mean and peak glutamic-oxaloacetic and -pyruvic transaminases, total serum bilirubin, or mean and minimum prothrombin time values studied from day 1 to day 5 post-OLT. Moreover, categorization of donors using the MEGX t15 cut-off point of 80 ng/ml could not predict liver graft quality, as previously suggested. In summary, MEGX t15 in liver donors correlated neither with graft outcome nor with early functional parameters. Accordingly, the MEGX test should not be used as an isolated discriminatory evaluation for organ utilization