The impact of liver disease on mortality in cystic fibrosis-A systematic review.

BACKGROUND: There is conflicting evidence on the impact of liver disease (CFLD) on life expectancy in CF. Therefore the aim of this systematic review was to evaluate the impact of liver disease (CFLD) on mortality in CF. METHODS: The protocol was published at (https://hrbopenresearch.org/articles/3-44/v3) using PRISPMA-P guidelines and registered in Prospero 2020 (CRD42020182885). Three databases were searched for publications (1938-2020) where the outcome was all-cause mortality (defined as death and transplantation) or CF-specific mortality in participants with CFLD. Studies with and without a comparator group were included. Studies were divided into 2 groups based on the definition of CFLD: Group 1 used 2 categories of liver disease (i) liver disease with portal hypertension (PH) (ii) non-specific abnormalities which did not meet the criteria for PH, Group 2 studies only included participants with PH. RESULTS: All 14 eligible studies were observational, with a moderate-high risk of bias, Six of the 14 studies directly compared mortality between those with CFLD and those with no liver disease, and 5/6 demonstrated that those with CFLD had at least 3 time the risk of death compared to those with no liver disease. Pulmonary complications were the primary cause of death. CONCLUSION: This SR demonstrates that liver disease shortens life expectancy in CF, and that pulmonary complications are the primary cause of death in those with CFLD. There has been no improvement in survival for persons with CFLD despite significant improvements in life expectancy for persons with CF who have no evidence of liver disease.

The impact of liver disease on mortality in cystic fibrosis - a systematic review protocol.

Background Cystic fibrosis (CF) is a multiorgan disease affecting the lungs pancreas and gastrointestinal tract. Pulmonary complications are the most common manifestation of the disease. Recent advances in the treatment of pulmonary complications have resulted in substantial improvement in life expectancy. Less than 10% of persons with CF (PWCF) develop liver disease (CFLD). There is conflicting evidence about impact of liver disease on mortality in CF, with evidence suggesting that CFLD contributes to increased mortality in CF, while other studies suggest that the impact on mortality is limited. Understanding the contribution of liver disease to mortality in CF is essential if further improvements in life expectancy are to be achieved. Objective: To document the impact of liver disease on life expectancy for PWCF. Methods: This systematic review will be conducted in compliance with the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analysis Protocols (PRISMA-P 2015). PubMed, Medline and Embase will be searched for English language publications (1949-2020). Studies reporting the outcome for CFLD will be included where the definition of CFLD is outlined clearly in a CF population. Studies with and without a comparator will be evaluated. Clinical trials of ursodeoxycholic acid will be excluded as well as organ transplantation outcome studies. We will examine all-cause and specific causes of mortality.We will include transplantation in our estimates of all-cause mortality. The Axis Risk of Bias Tool for Observational Studies will be used to evaluate the quality of studies. We will provide a narrative synthesis of our findings using tabular formats to highlight any impact of liver disease on mortality in CF. Conclusion: It is anticipated that this review will bring clarity to the question of whether CFLD shortens life expectancy in PWCF and stimulate new approaches to the management of CFLD.