The morbidity associated with liver surgery remained substantially high despite considerable surgical and anesthetic improvements. The unmet need of accurate biomarkers to predict postoperative complications is widely accepted.
This pilot study aimed to assess serum albumin as a surrogate marker of surgical stress and to test its potential predictive role for postoperative complications.
This retrospective pilot study included 106 patients who underwent liver surgery between 2010 and 2014. Serum albumin levels were measured pre- and post-operatively. Maximal albumin decrease (AlbΔmin) was correlated with complications.
Serum albumin rapidly dropped after surgery. AlbΔmin was significantly increased in patients with complications (14.5±6.0g/L vs. 10.3±7.2, p=0.009). On multivariate analysis, ASA III/IV (p=0.016) and AlbΔmin (p=0.037) were the only predictors of overall complications.
Early postoperative drop of serum albumin reflects the intensity of the surgical stress and may predict complications after liver surgery. Serum albumin is a biomarker displaying precious features and deserving further prospective investigations.