Portacaval Shunt Surgery

What is portacaval shunt surgery?

Portacaval shunting is a surgical treatment to create new connections between two blood vessels in your abdomen. It is used to treat people who have severe liver problems. However, if your liver is severely damaged, the blood won’t flow through it at a healthy rate. This causes the blood to back up, increasing pressure at the portal vein. This results in a condition known as portal hypertension. In this case, patients need portacaval shunt surgery.