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More severe deficits in functional status associated with higher mortality among adults awaiting liver transplantation

The impact of functional status on liver transplant (LT) waitlist outcomes is not well studied. Early evidence suggests frailty portends increased mortality. We aim to evaluate the association of functional status with LT waitlist survival and the probability of receiving LT among adults with cirrhosis. Using 2005‐2016 United Network for Organ Sharing (UNOS) data, we retrospectively assessed the association of functional status, as determined by Karnofsky Performance Status Score (KPSS) with LT waitlist survival and the probability of receiving LT using Kaplan‐Meier and multivariate Cox proportional hazard models. Among 118 954 patients listed for LT, patients with worse Karnofsky scores, indicating poor functional status, were progressively more likely to receive liver transplantation compared to patients with better scores, with the most functionally disabled group having 68% higher probability of receiving LT (HR 1.68; 95% CI 1.61‐1.75, P < 0.001). Worse functional status was associated with increased waitlist mortality, with the most functionally disabled group 97% more likely to die on the waitlist (HR 1.97; 95% CI 1.81‐2.16, P < 0.001). In conclusion, among patients awaiting LT, worse functional status was associated with significantly higher waitlist mortality.