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The red-blood-cell distribution width (RDW) is a newly recognized risk marker in patients with cardiovascular disease, but its role in nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) has not been well defined. The aim of the present study was to determine the association between RDW values and the level of fibrosis in NAFLD according to BARD and FIB-4 scores.
This study included 24,547 subjects who had been diagnosed with NAFLD based on abdominal ultrasonography and questionnaires about alcohol consumption. The degree of liver fibrosis was determined according to BARD and FIB-4 scores. The association between RDW values and the degree of fibrosis in NAFLD was analyzed retrospectively.
After adjusting for age, hemoglobin level, mean corpuscular volume, history of hypertension, history of diabetes, and high-sensitivity C-reactive protein, the RDW values were 12.61±0.41% (mean±SD), 12.70±0.70%, 12.77±0.62%, 12.87±0.82%, and 13.25±0.90% for those with BARD scores of 0, 1, 2, 3, and 4, respectively, and 12.71±0.72%, 12.79±0.66%, and 13.23±1.52% for those with FIB-4 scores of <1.30, 1.31-2.66, and ≥2.67, respectively (
Elevated RDW is independently associated with advanced fibrosis in NAFLD.
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Waist circumference (WC) is a risk factor for metabolic syndrome and is related to insulin resistance (IR) and nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD). The purpose of this study was to determine the association between WC and IR and NAFLD in apparently healthy Korean adults.
The volunteers included in this cross-sectional study comprised 9,159 adults (5,052 men, 4,107 women) who participated in a comprehensive health checkup program. IR was evaluated by the homeostasis model assessment of IR (HOMA-IR) and was considered to be present when the HOMA-IR score was >2. NAFLD was evaluated by ultrasound examination. Elevated alanine aminotransferase (ALT) was defined as >40 IU/L in men and >35 IU/L in women. Logistic regression was performed to determine the odds ratios (ORs) and 95% confidence intervals (95% CIs) for NAFLD, IR, and ALT according to categorized levels of WC.
NAFLD was found in 2,553 (27.9%) of the participants (82.6% men, 17.4% women), while IR and elevated ALT were found in 17.2% (68.1% men, 31.9% women) and 10% (83% men, 17% women), respectively. After adjusting for confounding factors, the prevalence of NAFLD, IR, and elevated ALT was significantly associated with increases in WC quartile: highest quartile for NAFLD in men, OR=15.539, 95% CI=12.687-19.033; highest quartile for NAFLD in women, OR=48.732, 95% CI=23.918-99.288 (
WC contributes to IR and NAFLD in apparently healthy Korean adults, and thus may be an important factor in the development of IR and NAFLD.
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This study evaluated the clinical outcomes of balloon-occluded retrograde transvenous obliteration (BRTO) for the treatment of hemorrhage from gastric varices (GV) in Korean patients with liver cirrhosis (LC).
We retrospectively analyzed data from 183 LC patients who underwent BRTO for GV bleeding in 6 university-based hospitals between January 2001 and December 2010.
Of the 183 enrolled patients, 49 patients had Child-Pugh (CP) class A LC, 105 had CP class B, and 30 had CP class C at the time of BRTO. BRTO was successfully performed in 177 patients (96.7%). Procedure-related complications (e.g., pulmonary thromboembolism and renal infarction) occurred in eight patients (4.4%). Among 151 patients who underwent follow-up examinations of GV, 79 patients (52.3%) achieved eradication of GV, and 110 patients (72.8%) exhibited marked shrinkage of the treated GV to grade 0 or I. Meanwhile, new-appearance or aggravation of esophageal varices (EV) occurred in 54 out of 136 patients who underwent follow-up endoscopy (41.2%). During the 36.0±29.2 months (mean±SD) of follow-up, 39 patients rebled (hemorrhage from GV in 7, EV in 18, nonvariceal origin in 4, and unknown in 10 patients). The estimated 3-year rebleeding-free rate was 74.8%, and multivariate analysis showed that CP class C was associated with rebleeding (odds ratio, 2.404; 95% confidence-interval, 1.013-5.704;
BRTO can be performed safely and effectively for the treatment of GV bleeding. However, aggravation of EV or bleeding from EV is not uncommon after BRTO; thus, periodic endoscopy to follow-up of EV with or without prophylactic treatment might be necessary in LC patients undergoing BRTO.
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Nonselective β-blockers (NSBBs), such as propranolol, reportedly exert a pleiotropic effect in liver cirrhosis. A previous report suggested that survival was higher in patients receiving adjusted doses of NSBBs than in ligation patients. This study investigated whether low-dose NSBB medication has beneficial effects in patients with liver cirrhosis, especially in terms of overall survival.
We retrospectively studied 273 cirrhotic patients (199 males; age 53.6±10.2 years, mean±SD) who visited our institution between March 2003 and December 2007; follow-up data were collected until June 2011. Among them, 138 patients were given a low-dose NSBB (BB group: propranolol, 20-60 mg/day), and the remaining 135 patients were not given an NSBB (NBB group). Both groups were stratified randomly according to Child-Turcotte-Pugh (CTP) classification and age.
The causes of liver cirrhosis were alcohol (n=109, 39.9%), hepatitis B virus (n=125, 45.8%), hepatitis C virus (n=20, 7.3%), and cryptogenic (n=19, 7.0%). The CTP classes were distributed as follows: A, n=116, 42.5%; B, n=126, 46.2%; and C, n=31, 11.4%. Neither the overall survival (
Use of low-dose NSBB medication in patients with liver cirrhosis is not indicated in terms of overall and HCC-free survival.
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The aim of this study was to analyze the clinical impacts of obesity and hazardous alcohol use on the outcome of entecavir (ETV) therapy in chronic hepatitis B (CHB) patients.
The medical records of 88 treatment-naïve patients who were diagnosed with CHB and received ETV between March 2007 and September 2009 were analyzed retrospectively. Body mass index (BMI) values and Alcohol Use Disorders Identification Test (AUDIT) scores were obtained at 6 months after the initiation of ETV (0.5 mg daily) treatment.
A BMI of 25 kg/m2 or more was recognized as an indicator of obesity, and a total AUDIT score of 8 or more was recognized as an indicator of hazardous alcohol use. Of the cohort, 24 patients (27.3%) were obese and 17 (19.3%) were hazardous alcohol users. The rate of seroconversion, alanine aminotransferase (ALT) normalization, and hepatitis B virus (HBV)-DNA negativity (<300 copies/mL) at 3, 6, and 12 months of treatment did not differ significantly between the normal-BMI and high-BMI groups. Moreover, the rate of seroconversion and HBV-DNA negativity at 3, 6, and 12 months of treatment did not differ significantly between the nonhazardous and hazardous alcohol users. However, the frequency of ALT normalization at 12 months was significantly lower among hazardous alcohol users (91.5% vs. 70.6%;
Obesity and hazardous alcohol drinking have no significant impact on the outcome of ETV treatment. However, the ALT normalization rate at 12 months after initiation of ETV treatment was significantly lower among the hazardous alcohol users.
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Hepatic hydrothorax in patients with decompensated liver cirrhosis is a challenging problem. Treatment with diuretics and intermittent thoracentesis can be effective in selected patients. However, there are few effective therapeutic options in patients who are intolerant of these therapies. This study investigated the clinical usefulness of chemical pleurodesis with or without video-assisted thoracoscopic surgery (VATS) for patients with refractory hepatic hydrothorax.
Eleven consecutive patients with refractory hepatic hydrothorax who underwent chemical pleurodesis with or without VATS between July 2007 and February 2011 were enrolled in this study. The medical records and radiologic imagings of these patients were thoroughly reviewed.
The median number of chemical pleurodesis sessions performed was 3 (range: 2-10). Successful pleurodesis was achieved in 8 of the 11 patients (72.7%), 5 (62.5%) of whom remained asymptomatic and hydrothorax free for a median follow-up of 16 weeks (range: 2-52 weeks). Complications were low-grade fever/leukocytosis (n=11, 100%), pneumonia (n=1, 9.1%), pneumothorax (n=4, 36.4%), azotemia/acute renal failure (n=6, 54.6%), and hepatic encephalopathy (n=4, 36.4%). Five patients were suspected as having procedure-related mortality (45.5%) due to the occurrence of acute renal failure with hepatic failure. The overall survival was significantly longer in the success group than in the non-success group.
Although chemical pleurodesis may improve the clinical symptoms and the radiologic findings in as many as 72.7% of patients with refractory hepatic hydrothorax, a significantly high prevalence of procedure-related morbidity and mortality hinders the routine application of this procedure for such patients.
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