While checklists have a role (Checklists for Crisis and Daily Care | gutsandgrowth), most will not be workable if each has 93 recommendations like the 2012 AASLD Adult Liver Transplant Practice Guidelines (Liver Transplantation 2013; 19: 3-26).

While the guidelines are comprehensive including topics like vascular thrombosis, immunosuppression, late rejection, bone health, kidney diseases, metabolic syndrome, reproductive health, and infectious disease, they are not easily organized.  Some recommendations include the following:

1. “the frequency of monitoring with liver tests should be individualized by the transplant center (grade 1, level a)”
2. “depending on the pattern of liver tests, magnetic resonance imaging, computed tomography, ERCP, and ultrasound may be appropriate (grade 1, level a)”
3. “frequent handwashing reduces the risk of infection…(grade 1, level a)”
4. “shoes, socks, long-sleeve shirts and long pants should be worn for activities that will involve soil exposure..(grade 1, level a)”
5. Patients “with PSC and inflammatory bowel disease…should undergo an annual screening colonoscopy ..(grade 1, level b)”
6. “the ideal immunosuppression for pregnancy is tacrolimus monotherapy”

Thus, the recommendations are sometimes almost worthless like #1-3, sometimes difficult to implement like #4, and sometimes specific like #5-6.

Bottom-line:

While not useful as a practical checklist for routine care, this guideline offers useful information on a broad range of problems for transplant recipients.