Perioperative Epidural Anesthesia and Analgesia on Gut Microbiota

May 7, 2026 updated by: National Taiwan University Hospital

The Effect of Perioperative Epidural Anesthesia and Analgesia on Gut Microbiota and Gastrointestinal Function Recovery in Living Donor Hepatectomy

As the only curative treatment for end-stage liver diseases, liver transplantation has been widely carried out around the world. The shortage of organs from deceased donors facilitate the adoption of living donor liver transplantation. Living donor hepatectomy is the most massive operation a healthy person could undergo, so donor safety is of utmost importance. However, previous studies focused on the outcomes of liver transplant recipients. There are still many uncertainties about the recovery in living liver donors.

The body microorganisms that reside in the human intestinal tract, referred to as the gut microbiota, are essential to human metabolism and immunity. The physiological functions of microbiota include defense against pathogens, providing nutrients such as vitamin B12 folate and vitamin K, and modulating gut integrity and permeability. Despite relatively stable microbiota during life, different illnesses, surgeries, medications dietary factors, and lifestyle changes could contribute to the imbalance of ecosystems resulting many gastrointestinal and extra-gastrointestinal disorders. Many researches have established a relationship between the gut microbiome and patients with liver disease such as liver cirrhosis, alcoholic liver disease and obesity related liver diseases etc. These liver disorders are associated with bacterial overgrowth, dysbiosis, and increased intestinal permeability. However, the relationship between hepatectomy and microbiota has not been fully investigated, especially in healthy liver donors.

Many routine perioperative management can impact the state of the microbiome and therefore can impact clinical outcomes, like bowel preparation and antibiotics. Potential factors affecting the gut microbiota also include perioperative manipulation, stress released hormones, and opioids. Maintenance of proper anesthetic depth is beneficial to attenuate surgical stress. However, general anesthesia including volatile anesthetics and opioids, is associated with altered gut microbiota. Therefore, regional anesthesia and analgesia which effectively attenuating surgical stress while efficiently reducing general anesthetics consumption, seem to provide promising advantages. Epidural analgesia has been proved to improve gastrointestinal function in major abdominal and thoracic surgery. However, the effect of perioperative epidural anesthesia and analgesia on microbiota is not clear.

Study Overview

Status

Status

Indicates the current recruitment status or the expanded access status.
Completed

Conditions

Conditions

The disease, disorder, syndrome, illness, or injury that is being studied. On ClinicalTrials.gov, conditions may also include other health-related issues, such as lifespan, quality of life, and health risks.

Intervention / Treatment

Intervention / Treatment

A process or action that is the focus of a clinical study. Interventions include drugs, medical devices, procedures, vaccines, and other products that are either investigational or already available. Interventions can also include noninvasive approaches, such as education or modifying diet and exercise.

Study Type

Study Type

Describes the nature of a clinical study. Study types include interventional studies (also called clinical trials), observational studies (including patient registries), and expanded access.
Interventional

Enrollment (Actual)

Enrollment

The number of participants in a clinical study. The "anticipated" enrollment is the target number of participants that the researchers need for the study.
42

Phase

Phase

The stage of a clinical trial studying a drug or biological product, based on definitions developed by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA). The phase is based on the study's objective, the number of participants, and other characteristics. There are five phases: Early Phase 1 (formerly listed as Phase 0), Phase 1, Phase 2, Phase 3, and Phase 4. Not Applicable is used to describe trials without FDA-defined phases, including trials of devices or behavioral interventions.
  • Not Applicable

Contacts and Locations

This section provides the contact details for those conducting the study, and information on where this study is being conducted.

Study Contact

Study Contact

The name and contact information for the person who can answer enrollment questions for a clinical study. Each location where the study is being conducted may also have a specific contact, who may be better able to answer those questions.
  • Name: Kuang-Cheng Chan, M.D.,PhD
  • Phone Number: 62158 +886-2-23123456
  • Email: jkjchan@gmail.com

Study Locations

  • Taiwan
      • Taipei, Taiwan, 100
        • Department of Anesthesiology, National Taiwan University Hospital

Participation Criteria

Researchers look for people who fit a certain description, called eligibility criteria. Some examples of these criteria are a person's general health condition or prior treatments.

Eligibility Criteria

Eligibility Criteria

The key requirements that people who want to participate in a clinical study must meet or the characteristics they must have. Eligibility criteria consist of both inclusion criteria (which are required for a person to participate in the study) and exclusion criteria (which prevent a person from participating). Types of eligibility criteria include whether a study accepts healthy volunteers, has age or age group requirements, or is limited by sex.

Ages Eligible for Study

20 years to 55 years (Adult)

Accepts Healthy Volunteers

No

Description

Inclusion Criteria:

  1. Expected to receive living liver hepatectomy in National Taiwan University Hospital, age between 20 and 55 years old.

Exclusion Criteria:

  1. Previous use of antibiotics within four weeks.
  2. Previous gastrointestinal surgery.

Study Plan

This section provides details of the study plan, including how the study is designed and what the study is measuring.

How is the study designed?

Design Details

  • Primary Purpose: Diagnostic
  • Allocation: Non-Randomized
  • Interventional Model: Parallel Assignment
  • Masking: None (Open Label)

Arms and Interventions

Participant Group / Arm

Participant Group / Arm

A group or subgroup of participants in a clinical trial that receives a specific intervention/treatment, or no intervention, according to the trial's protocol.
Intervention / Treatment

Intervention / Treatment

A process or action that is the focus of a clinical study. Interventions include drugs, medical devices, procedures, vaccines, and other products that are either investigational or already available. Interventions can also include noninvasive approaches, such as education or modifying diet and exercise.
Active Comparator: Patient controlled epidural analgesia
Use of patient controlled epidural analgesia (PCEA) for postoperative pain control
Procedure: Patient controlled epidural analgesia
Patient controlled epidural analgesia with marcaine 0.66mg/ml +fentanyl 1.75mcg/ml for postoperative pain control
Other Names:
  • PCEA
Sham Comparator: Intravenous patient controlled analgesia
Use of intravenous patient controlled analgesia(IVPCA) for postoperative pain control
Drug: Intravenous patient controlled analgesia
Intravenous patient controlled analgesia with morphine 1mg/ml for postoperative pain control
Other Names:
  • IVPCA

What is the study measuring?

Primary Outcome Measures

Primary Outcome Measures

In a clinical study's protocol, the planned outcome measure that is the most important for evaluating the effect of an intervention/treatment. Most clinical studies have one primary outcome measure, but some have more than one.
Outcome Measure
Measure Description
Time Frame
Microbiota analysis
Time Frame: one month
16S metagenomic sequence processing
one month

Secondary Outcome Measures

Secondary Outcome Measures

In a clinical study's protocol, a planned outcome measure that is not as important as the primary outcome measure for evaluating the effect of an intervention but is still of interest. Most clinical studies have more than one secondary outcome measure.
Outcome Measure
Measure Description
Time Frame
LPS-binding protein
Time Frame: one month
LPS-binding protein(mcg/mL)
one month
Intestinal fatty acid binding protein
Time Frame: one month
Intestinal fatty acid binding protein(ng/mL)
one month
IgA
Time Frame: one month
IgA(mcg/mL)
one month
IL-6
Time Frame: one month
IL-6(ng/mL)
one month
I-FEED scoring
Time Frame: one week

I-FEED scoring system for postoperative gastrointestinal function:

  1. Intake(score): tolerating oral diet(0), limited tolerance(1), complete Intolerance(3)
  2. Feeling nauseated(score): none(0), responsive to treatment(1), resistant to treatment(3)
  3. Emesis(score): none(0), ≧1 episode of low volume(<100mL) and none bilious(1), ≧1 episode of high volume(>100mL) or bilious(3)
  4. Exam(score): no distension(0), distension without tympany(1), significant distension with tympany(3)
  5. Duration of symptoms(score):0-24hours(0),24-72hours(1),>72hours(2)

Total score: 0-2 normal, 3-5 postoperative GI intolerance, >6 postoperative GI dysfunction
one week

Collaborators and Investigators

This is where you will find people and organizations involved with this study.

Sponsor

Sponsor

The organization or person who initiates the study and who has authority and control over the study.
National Taiwan University Hospital

Investigators

Investigators

A researcher involved in a clinical study. Related terms include site principal investigator, site sub-investigator, study chair, study director, and study principal investigator.
  • Principal Investigator: Kuang-Cheng Chan, M.D.,PhD, Department of Anesthesiology, Natioanal Taiwan University Hospital

Study record dates

These dates track the progress of study record and summary results submissions to ClinicalTrials.gov. Study records and reported results are reviewed by the National Library of Medicine (NLM) to make sure they meet specific quality control standards before being posted on the public website.

Study Major Dates

Study Start (Actual)

Study Start

The actual date on which the first participant was enrolled in a clinical study. The "anticipated" study start date is the date that the researchers think will be the study start date.
October 19, 2019

Primary Completion (Actual)

Primary Completion

The date on which the last participant in a clinical study was examined or received an intervention to collect final data for the primary outcome measure. Whether the clinical study ended according to the protocol or was terminated does not affect this date. For clinical studies with more than one primary outcome measure with different completion dates, this term refers to the date on which data collection is completed for all the primary outcome measures. The "anticipated" primary completion date is the date that the researchers think will be the primary completion date for the study.
September 25, 2021

Study Completion (Actual)

Study Completion

The date on which the last participant in a clinical study was examined or received an intervention/treatment to collect final data for the primary outcome measures, secondary outcome measures, and adverse events (that is, the last participant's last visit). The "anticipated" study completion date is the date that the researchers think will be the study completion date.
October 31, 2021

Study Registration Dates

First Submitted

First Submitted

The date on which the study sponsor or investigator first submitted a study record to ClinicalTrials.gov. There is typically a delay of a few days between the first submitted date and the record's availability on ClinicalTrials.gov (the first posted date).
September 3, 2019

First Submitted That Met QC Criteria

First Submitted That Met QC Criteria

The date on which the study sponsor or investigator first submits a study record that is consistent with National Library of Medicine (NLM) quality control (QC) review criteria. The sponsor or investigator may need to revise and submit a study record one or more times before NLM's QC review criteria are met. It is the responsibility of the sponsor or investigator to ensure that the study record is consistent with the NLM QC review criteria.
September 3, 2019

First Posted (Actual)

First Posted

The date on which the study record was first available on ClinicalTrials.gov after National Library of Medicine (NLM) quality control (QC) review has concluded. There is typically a delay of a few days between the date the study sponsor or investigator submitted the study record and the first posted date.
September 6, 2019

Study Record Updates

Last Update Posted (Actual)

Last Update Posted

The most recent date on which changes to a study record were made available on ClinicalTrials.gov. There may be a delay between when the changes were submitted to ClinicalTrials.gov by the study's sponsor or investigator (the last update submitted date) and the last update posted date.
May 8, 2026

Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria

Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria

The most recent date on which the study sponsor or investigator submitted changes to a study record that are consistent with National Library of Medicine (NLM) quality control (QC) review criteria. It is the responsibility of the sponsor or investigator to ensure that the study record is consistent with the NLM QC review criteria.
May 7, 2026

Last Verified

Last Verified

The most recent date on which the study sponsor or investigator confirmed the information about a clinical study on ClinicalTrials.gov as accurate and current. If a study with a recruitment status of recruiting; not yet recruiting; or active, not recruiting has not been confirmed within the past 2 years, the study's recruitment status is shown as unknown.
May 1, 2026

More Information

Terms related to this study

Keywords

Additional Relevant MeSH Terms

Other Study ID Numbers

Other Study ID Numbers

Identifiers or ID numbers other than the NCT number that are assigned to a clinical study by the study's sponsor, funders, or others. These numbers may include unique identifiers from other trial registries and National Institutes of Health grant numbers.
  • 201812090RINC

Drug and device information, study documents

Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated drug product

No

Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated device product

No

This information was retrieved directly from the website clinicaltrials.gov without any changes. If you have any requests to change, remove or update your study details, please contact register@clinicaltrials.gov. As soon as a change is implemented on clinicaltrials.gov, this will be updated automatically on our website as well.

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