The patient will be under general anesthesia throughout the surgery. Once asleep, the transplant surgeon will make an incision shaped like a boomerang on the upper part of the abdomen. The surgical team will then remove the patient's old liver, leaving portions of his major blood vessels in place. The new liver will then be inserted and attached to these blood vessels and to the patient's bile ducts. To help with bile drainage, a tube will also be inserted in the bile duct during surgery.
For a more detailed description of the liver transplant surgery process, please visit The Liver Transplant Tour.