128 research outputs found
Caucasian Ethnicity, but Not Treatment Cessation is Associated with HBsAg Loss Following Nucleos(t)ide Analogue-Induced HBeAg Seroconversion
It is well appreciated that ethnicity influences the natural history and immune responses during a chronic hepatitis B infection. In this study, we explore the effect of ethnicity and treatment cessation on Hepatitis B surface Antigen (HBsAg) seroclearance in patients with Nucleos(t)ide Analogue (NA)-induced Hepatitis B e Antigen (HBeAg) seroconversion. We performed a multi-ethnic, multicentric observational cohort study. The analyzed cohort consisted of 178 mono-infected, predominantly male (75.3%) chronic hepatitis B patients of mixed ethnicity (44.4% Asians, 48.9% Caucasians) with nucleos(t)ide analogue-induced HBeAg seroconversion. Treatment was withdrawn in 105 patients and continued in 73, leading to HBsAg loss in 14 patients off- and 16 patients on-treatment, respectively. Overall, HBsAg loss rates were not affected by treatment cessation (hazard ratio 1.45, p = 0.372), regardless of consolidation treatment duration. Caucasian ethnicity was associated with an increased chance of HBsAg loss (hazard ratio 6.70, p = 0.001), but hepatitis B virus genotype was not (p = 0.812). In conclusion, ethnicity is the most important determinant for HBsAg loss after NA-induced HBeAg seroconversion, with up to six-fold higher HBsAg loss rates in Caucasians compared to Asians, irrespective of treatment cessation and consolidation treatment duration
Intensive enteral nutrition is ineffective for individuals with severe alcoholic hepatitis treated with corticosteroids.
peer reviewedBACKGROUND & AIMS: Severe alcoholic hepatitis (AH) is a lifethreatening
disease for which adequate oral nutritional support
is recommended. We performed a randomized controlled trial to
determine whether the combination of corticosteroid and
intensive enteral nutrition therapy is more effective than corticosteroid
therapy alone in patients with severe AH. METHODS:
We enrolled 136 heavy consumers of alcohol (age, 18â75 y)
with recent onset of jaundice and biopsy-proven severe AH in
our study, performed at 18 hospitals in Belgium and 2 in
France, from February 2010 through February 2013. Subjects
were assigned randomly (1:1) to groups that received either
intensive enteral nutrition plus methylprednisolone or conventional
nutrition plus methylprednisolone (controls). In the
intensive enteral nutrition group, enteral nutrition was given
via feeding tube for 14 days. The primary end point was patient
survival for 6 months. RESULTS: In an intention-to-treat analysis,
we found no significant difference between groups in
6-month cumulative mortality: 44.4% of patients died in the
intensive enteral nutrition group (95% confidence interval [CI],
32.2%â55.9%) and 52.1% of controls died (95% CI, 39.4%â
63.4%) (P Œ .406). The enteral feeding tube was withdrawn
prematurely from 48.5% of patients, and serious adverse
events considered to be related to enteral nutrition occurred in
5 patients. Regardless of group, a greater proportion of patients
with a daily calorie intake less than 21.5 kcal/kg/day died
(65.8%; 95% CI, 48.8â78.4) than patients with a higher intake
of calories (33.1%; 95% CI, 23.1%â43.4%) (P < .001).
CONCLUSIONS: In a randomized trial of patients with severe AH
treated with corticosteroids, we found that intensive enteral
nutrition was difficult to implement and did not increase survival.
However, low daily energy intake was associated with greater
mortality, so adequate nutritional intake should be a main goal for
treatment
Gadoxetic acid-enhanced MRI outperformed MDCT in diagnosing small hepatocellular carcinoma: A meta-analysis
Early detection of small hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) lesions can improve longterm patient survival. A systematic review and meta-analysis of the diagnostic performance of gadoxetic acid disodium (Gd-EOB-DTPA)âenhanced magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) and multidetector computed tomography (MDCT) was performed in diagnosing small HCCs measuring up to 2âcm (â€2âcm). Two investigators searched multiple databases for studies in which the performances of either Gd-EOB-DTPAâenhanced MRI or MDCT were reported with sufficient data to construct 2âĂâ2 contingency tables for diagnosing HCCs up to 2âcm on a per-lesion or per-patient level. Diagnostic performances were quantitatively pooled by a bivariate random-effect model with further meta-regression and subgroup analyses. A total of 27 studies (14 on Gd-EOB-DTPAâenhanced MRI, 9 on MDCT, and 4 on both) were included, enrolling a total of 1735 patients on Gd-EOB-DTPAâenhanced MRI and 1781 patients on MDCT. Gd-EOB-DTPAâenhanced MRI demonstrated significantly higher overall sensitivity than did MDCT (0.96 versus 0.65; Pââ0.05). Area under the summary receiver operating characteristic curve was 0.97 with Gd-EOB-DTPAâenhanced MRI and 0.85 with MDCT. Regarding Gd-EOB-DTPAâenhanced MRI, sensitivity was significantly higher for studies from non-Asian countries than Asian countries (0.96 versus 0.93; Pâ<â0.01), for retrospective studies than prospective studies (0.95 versus 0.91; Pâ<â0.01), and for those with Gd-EOB-DTPA injection rateââ„â1.5âmL/s than that of <1.5âmL/s (0.97 versus 0.90; Pâ<â0.01). In conclusion, Gd-EOB-DTPAâenhanced MRI demonstrated higher sensitivity and overall diagnostic accuracy than MDCT, and thus should be the preferred imaging modality for diagnosing small HCCs measuring up to 2âcm. Liver Transplantation 23 1505â1518 2017 AASLD
Sleep disturbances in patients with liver cirrhosis: prevalence, impact, and management challenges
Marie Bruyneel,1 Thomas Sersté2,3 1Sleep Unit, Department of Pneumology, Centre Hospitalier Universitaire Saint Pierre, Université Libre de Bruxelles, Brussels, Belgium; 2Department of Hepato-gastroenterology, Centre Hospitalier Universitaire Saint Pierre, Université Libre de Bruxelles, Brussels, Belgium; 3Liver Transplantation Unit, Department of Hepato-gastroenterology, Erasme Hospital, Université Libre de Bruxelles, Brussels, Belgium Abstract: Sleep–wake disturbances are common in liver cirrhosis and associated with impaired quality of life. The most common abnormalities are insomnia (difficulties falling asleep and maintaining sleep, or unrefreshing sleep), excessive daytime sleepiness, and sleep–wake inversion (disturbances of circadian rhythmicity). The underlying pathophysiological mechanisms for sleep disturbances in cirrhosis are complex and may include disturbed metabolism of melatonin and glucose, alterations in thermoregulation, and altered ghrelin secretion profiles. Sleep–wake abnormalities are related to the presence of hepatic encephalopathy (HE) and improvement in sleep parameters can be observed when HE is properly managed. A few non-specific treatments for sleep–wake abnormalities have been tried with encouraging results for hydroxyzine and modafinil. However, due to the potential for medication toxicity in these disabled patients, further studies are needed to address the potential role of non-drug therapies in this population (eg, cognitive behavioral therapy, mindfulness, yoga) that have demonstrated usefulness in insomnia disorders. Keywords: sleep disorders, hepatic encephalopathy, liver cirrhosis, excessive daytime sleepiness, circadian rhythm, insomnia 
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