Abstract
Impaired cognition in liver recipients has been studied in the immediate posttransplant period but is poorly understood in the long term, despite its importance to quality of life. In a single-center cohort of liver recipients transplanted in 2010-2022 and >1 year after transplant, we assessed cognitive performance using a telephone-based battery. We compared depression, anxiety, and self-reported function by cognitive performance using descriptive statistics. Among 120 participants (median age 65, median 7.3 y after transplant), 25% had below-expectation cognition, 53% at-expectation cognition, and 22% above-expectation. Baseline characteristics were similar between groups. Below-expectation performance was most commonly observed in verbal learning (28%) and verbal memory (22%). Overall, 46% had symptoms of depression (38%) and/or anxiety (28%); anxiety was less common among those with above-expectation cognition (0%) versus below-expectation (34%) or at-expectation cognition (38%, p=0.01). The impaired global daily function was reported by 36% of recipients but was not associated with objective cognitive performance. Below-expectation cognition was prevalent among 25% of liver recipients at least 1 year after transplant and was associated with a higher likelihood of reporting psychiatric distress. These findings underscore the need for longitudinal assessment of cognitive and mental health outcomes among recipients of liver transplants.