Baseline characteristics
The baseline characteristics of the patients are shown in Table 1. A total of 159 patients were included, with 86 (54.1%) having favorable tumor locations. There were 96 patients (60.3%) in the OH group and 63 patients (39.6%) in the LH group. Male patients are dominant in both groups, and the presence of comorbidities (e.g., diabetes mellitus, hypertension, and coronary artery disease), was not significantly different between the OH and LH groups. More patients in the LH group versus the OH group were Child–Pugh class A (98.4% vs. 88.9%, p = 0.026), but the Model for End-stage Liver Disease-Na (MELD-Na) score was similar in both groups (8 vs. 7, p = 0.229). The preoperative 15-minute retention rate for indocyanine green was 13.3% and 9.1% in the LH and OH groups, respectively (p = 0.748).
In the subgroup analysis for the favorable location group, 42 patients (48.8%) were in the F-OH group, while 44 (51.2%) were in the F-LH group. Significantly more patients in the F-LH group versus the F-OH group were Child–Pugh class A (100% vs. 89.7%, p = 0.031), but the MELD-Na score was still similar in both groups (7 vs. 8, p = 0.604). The preoperative 15-minute retention rate of indocyanine green was 10.6% and 12.2% in the F-OH and F-LH groups, respectively (p = 0.871). The risk factor for HCC in both groups of patients is viral hepatitis (90.5% in the F-OH group and 86.4% in the F-LH group, p = 0.602).