Aim: Steatotic liver is more susceptible to ischemia-reperfusion injury than is lean liver. Our aim was to investigate the ability of the severely steatotic rat liver to sustain ischemia. Materials and Methods: One hundred male Wistar rats aged 12-14 weeks were included. Fifty rats were given regular diet, while the rest were given a choline-free diet for 12-14 weeks to develop severe liver steatosis. Each group was divided into the following five subgroups: Sham-operated, and 5, 10, 15 and 20 minutes of continuous vascular inflow occlusion. Serum glutamic-oxaloacetic transaminase and serum glutamic-pyruvic transaminase levels were measured at 24 hours postoperatively and the animals were surveilled for 30 days. Results: Serum transaminase levels increased as the duration of ischemia increased in lean livers (p