Assessment of gnostic and stereognostic functions in patients with liver cirrhosis: A comparative study with healthy controls.

BACKGROUND: Individuals diagnosed with liver cirrhosis typically experience a variety of symptoms. Decompensation, a critical stage in the disease's progression, is characterized by the emergence of prominent clinical signs. These signs typically include ascites, bleeding tendencies, hepatic encephalopathy, and jaundice. Furthermore, it is noteworthy that regions in the sensorimotor cortex responsible for practical and gnostic functions are closely situated within the parieto-occipital part of the cortex. Liver cirrhosis may also have an impact on this aspect of human motor function. OBJECTIVES: The main objective of the study is to compare the gnostic function and stereognostic function in individuals with liver cirrhosis and those in a healthy population. METHODS: The patients included in our registry, known as RH7, were enrolled in our study. The first group consisted of 74 liver cirrhosis patients (including 25 women and 49 men). The control group consisted of a 63 healthy population (including 23 women and 40 and men). Both groups underwent both the Petrie and kinaesthesia tests. RESULTS: The results of the Petrie test, which compared healthy participants with those with liver cirrhosis, indicate that the healthy population achieved a significant difference in both right and left upper limb compared to those with liver cirrhosis patients (p< 0.05). The healthy population showed a significant difference compared to liver cirrhosis patients in the kinesthesia test (p< 0.05), except for the second attempt with the left upper limb (p= 0.267). According to the LFI, there was no significant difference in either upper limb during both the initial and second attempts of Petrie test (p> 0.05). CONCLUSION: Patients with liver cirrhosis exhibited significantly poorer gnostic functions compared to the healthy population. This condition also leads to notable impairments in motor functions, affecting both the precision and coordination of movements. Despite these deficits, frailty alone does not appear to be an indicator of worsened gnostic or stereognostic functions. Therefore, while liver cirrhosis has a clear negative impact on motor and cognitive abilities, the presence of frailty does not necessarily exacerbate these specific cognitive deficits. This distinction is crucial for clinical assessments and interventions targeting motor and cognitive rehabilitation in patients with liver cirrhosis.

Low back pain in patients hospitalised with liver cirrhosis- a retrospective study.

BACKGROUND: Lower back pain is a common issue, but little is known about the prevalence of pain in patients with liver cirrhosis during hospitalisation. Therefore, the objective of this study was to determine lower back pain in patients with liver cirrhosis. METHODS: The sample consisted of patients with liver cirrhosis (n = 79; men n = 55; women n = 24; mean age = 55.79 ± 12.52 years). The hospitalised patients were mobile. The presence and intensity of pain were assessed in the lumbar spine during hospitalisation. The presence of pain was assessed using the visual analogue pain scale (0-10). The range of motion of the lower spine was assessed using the Schober and Stibor tests. Frailty was measured by Liver Frailty Index (LFI). The condition of liver disease was evaluated using The Model For the End-Stage Liver Disease (MELD) and Child-Pugh score (CPS) and ascites classification. Student's t test and Mann-Whitney test were used for analysis of the difference of group. Analysis of variance (ANOVA) with the Tukey post hoc test was used to test differences between categories of liver frailty index. The Kruskal-Wallis test was used to test pain distribution. Statistical significance was determined at the α-0.05 significance level. RESULT: The prevalence of pain in patients with liver cirrhosis was 13.92% (n = 11), and the mean intensity of pain according to the visual analogue scale was 3.73 (± 1.90). Lower back pain was present in patients with ascites (15.91%; n = 7) and without ascites (11.43%; n = 4). The prevalence of lower back pain was not statistically significant between patients with and without ascites (p = 0,426). The base of Schober's assessment mean score was 3.74 cm (± 1.81), and based on Stibor's assessment mean score was 5.84 cm (± 2.23). CONCLUSION: Lower back pain in patients with liver cirrhosis is a problem that requires attention. Restricted spinal mobility has been reported in patients with back pain, according to Stibor, compared to patients without pain. There was no difference in the incidence of pain in patients with and without ascites.

Comparison of the quality of life of patients with liver cirrhosis before and during the COVID-19 lockdown in Slovakia.

Liver cirrhosis is associated with a poor quality of life (QOL). The COVID-19 pandemic has led to several restriction measures and psychosocial consequences whose impact on QOL has combined with that of cirrhosis in an unknown way. Therefore, we have used our cirrhosis registry to assess the quality of life before the pandemic (on the first admission to the tertiary liver unit) and during the most pronounced phase of the first lockdown. In this cross-sectional study conducted during the first lockdown in Slovakia (from April to May 2020), we have repeated the QOL measurement of QOL in cirrhotic patients previously enrolled in the RH7 registry. Patients who were alive (according to the national registry of deaths) were identified and contacted by phone with a structured and standardized interview led by trained professionals. The tool used for both QOL measurements (at enrolment in RH7 and during lockdown) was a standardized and validated EuroQOL-5D (EQ-5D) questionnaire. The study included 97 patients, of which 37 (38.1%) were women and 60 (61.9%) were men. Responses were achieved from 75 patients (68.18%). In general, patients scored their quality of life significantly higher during the pandemic compared to examination at admission to RH7 (that is, at admission to our tertiary liver unit with cirrhosis) (p = 0.005). In particular, of the domains included in EQ-5D: (1) self-care was better during lockdown compared to the first record on admission to RH7 (p < 0.001). (2) the ability to perform daily activities has also improved during lockdown (p = 0.002). On the other hand, (3) pain and discomfort did not change significantly during the lockdown compared to the previous measurement (p = 0.882). (4) anxiety and depression were lower during lockdown compared to admission to RH7 (p = 0.01). The quality of life in patients with liver cirrhosis was better during the lockdown of SARS-CoV-2 compared to the previous measurement at admission to the tertiary liver unit.

Impact of the venting via vena cava inferior on the outcome of liver transplantation.

BACKGROUND: The liver transplantation is a standard treatment method for the indicated group of patients with a final hepatic failure. The aim of this paper was to compare two reperfusion methods of implanted liver, non-venting and venting vena cava, and to evaluate the impact of both techniques on the post reperfusion syndrome. METHODS: We compared two groups of patients: non-venting (n = 42) and venting (n = 41). We monitored bilirubin, liver enzymes and hemodynamic changes after reperfusion. We recorded monitored parameters immediately prior to the transplantation, during and after the reperfusion and on the 1st postoperative day. All liver grafts were used from the donors after a brain death. RESULTS: We did not find a statistically significant difference in input monitored parameters. We detected significant changes of pH after reperfusion in both monitored groups. We determined a significantly better saturation in the non-venting group, bigger consumption of fresh frozen plasma and thrombo-concentrate in the non-venting group, a significantly higher value of total bilirubin and a lower value of Quick's time in the non-venting group. CONCLUSION: Venting via vena cava inferior did not impact the perioperative and early postoperative course of liver transplantation in our group of patients. However, further analyses are required (Tab. 2, Fig. 3, Ref. 20).

Prognostic usefulness of serum myostatin in advanced chronic liver disease: its relation to gender and correlation with inflammatory status.

In hospitalized patients with advanced chronic liver disease (ACLD), we aimed to evaluate the association between myostatin and muscle mass, its relation to inflammation and to assess the added prognostic value of myostatin for survival. In a prospective single-center cohort study, inclusion criteria were: consecutive hospitalization for ACLD and Child-Pugh score ≥ 7 points. Baseline parameters were myostatin, C-reactive protein (CRP), hand-grip strength (HGS), mid-arm muscle circumference (MAC), transversal psoas muscle index (TPMI). Patients were followed-up for at least 400 days. We included 198 men, 157 women, and 40 controls, median myostatin levels in pg/ml were 1790.1 in women, 1959.4 in men, and 3850.0 and 2996.0 in healthy men and women. Myostatin positively correlated with TPMI, but weakly with MAC and HGS, and not in women. Myostatin negatively correlated with CRP in both genders. In cases with CRP 10 mg/l, regression analysis of myostatin versus HGS, MAC or TPMI showed steeper dependence curve. During follow up, 85 men and 64 women (42.9% versus 40.8%) have died, 22 men and 19 women (11.1% versus 12.1%) underwent liver transplantation. Cumulative incidence of death was higher in men with myostatin levels < 1600.0 pg/ml, but not in women. In men, MELD score and myostatin cut-off were independent predictors of worse survival but did not predict survival in women. In men, myostatin levels directly reflect the muscle mass and low levels independently predict worse survival. In women, myostatin is not associated with muscle mass or survival.

[First Czech and Slovak domino liver transplantation]. / První Cesko-Slovenská domino transplantace jater.

INTRODUCTION: The study introduces the first international, Czech and Slovak Domino Transplantation performed based on a tight cooperation between the Czech and Slovak transplant centres. MATERIAL AND METHODS: The donor of the cadaveric graft was a young Slovak man with Familial amyloidotic polyneuropathy. The livers of these patients are the predominant source of circulating transthyretin, and liver transplantation is the only treatment available for the disease. The graft was obtained from heart beating deceased donor with brain death. The domino graft was then transplanted to Czech sixty-three years old man with hepatocellular carcinoma and liver cirrhosis based on HCV. RESULTS: Both recipients had an uneventful immediate postoperative course with early graft function. The Czech patient faced early HCV recurrence in a graft which necessitated the reduction of immunosuppressives. CONCLUSION: The domino liver transplantation represents a suitable way for addressing graft shortage and reducing waiting list time. A well-organized cooperation between the two international centres is required to complete successful domino transplantation.

[Liver biopsy in Slovakia]. / Biopsie pecene na Slovensku.

INTRODUCTION: Liver biopsy is the most specific diagnostic modality in hepatology, but information about its application in Slovakia is rather obscure. METHODS: The authors performed a correspondence study with the aim to find out how many biopsy examinations has been done in Slovakia in 2001, for which indications, what kind of techniques have been applied and which small or great complications were encountered. RESULTS: It was established that in the year 2001, 400 biopsies for diffuse liver diseases were performed. There were 296 percutaneous biopsies, 82 laparoscopic biopsies and 22 trans-jugular biopsies forming the survey. Acute viral hepatitis was the most frequent indication, whereas non-alcohol steatohepatitis was a rare indication in spite of the high prevalence. The frequency of great complications was 0.00025%. No death associated with this procedure was reported. CONCLUSION: Liver biopsy has been done in Slovakia in indications, ways and with the frequency of complications, which were comparable with data from literature.

[Percutaneous biopsy of the liver]. / Perkutánna biopsia pecene.

Percutaneous liver biopsy represents the most specific examination of the nature and severity of liver diseases. P. Ehrlich was the first physician in history having done the intervention in 1880. The new history begins with the Menghini's publication on s.c. one-second biopsy in 1957. The present paper deals exclusively with diffuse diseases of the liver including the most frequent ones--virus hepatitis, alcohol and non-alcohol steatohepatitis. The contraindications include mainly coagulation disorders and non-cooperative patients. The percutaneous biopsy is mostly executed after ultrasonographic examination or under the control of various image-forming techniques and by means of various types of needles; the authors analyze advantages and disadvantages of individual techniques. If the contraindications are respected, the percutaneous biopsy is a safe method of examination, which may be done on out-patient basis. A large series of complications exists, but their frequency is generally low. Morbidity is referred in 0.2% of patients, the most frequent complications being pain and hypotension from vaso-vagal reactions, extensive intraperitoneal bleeding and hemobilia. Mortality is extremely low, the mean in large studies being 0.001%.

[Transjugular biopsy of the liver]. / Transjugulárna biopsia pecene.

Transjugular liver biopsy is an alternative of percutaneous biopsy in collection of hepatic tissue for histological examination. It is used when percutaneous biopsy is contraindicated, or involves great risk, i.e. in particular in patients with severe ascites and severely impaired blood coagulation. According to worldwide statistics it occurs in about one third of hepatological patients. The authors present a group of 16 patients who had transjugular biopsy and report on the high yield and low risk of the method. A representative histological sample was obtained in 100%, there were no complications in the investigated group. The authors give an account of the indications and description of the method, its possible complications. They compare their results with data in the literature. Their initial experience confirms that the inclusion of transjugular biopsy among hepatological examination methods is justified.

[Hepatitis B immunization in hemodialysis patients]. / Immunizácia proti hepatitíde B u hemodialyzovaných pacientov.

Infection with the virus of hepatitis B is found in haemodialyzed patients many times more frequently than in the normal population and it participates in their morbidity and mortality. It is also an important issue in patients after transplantation of the kidney. With regard to the alarmingly high prevalence of this infection in their haemodialyzation centre the authors analyzed retrospectively the effectiveness of the most successful preventive measure--active immunization--in 84 patients immunized with Engerix B according to the protocol recommended for haemodialyses. They found that: i) active immunization started after the onset of haemodialyzation has a low effectiveness and in patients who do lack protective antibodies anti-HBs before the onset of haemodialysis it is important to look for other preventive measures; ii) a certain effectiveness is achieved only by administration of more than three doses of vaccine.