Myosteatosis is closely associated with sarcopenia and significantly worse outcomes in patients with cirrhosis.

BACKGROUND AND AIM: Sarcopenia and myosteatosis are common in patients with cirrhosis. This study aimed to determine the prevalence of these muscle changes, their interrelations and their prognostic impact over a 12-month period. METHODS: We conducted a prospective multicentre study involving 433 patients. Sarcopenia and myosteatosis were evaluated using computed tomography scans. The 1-year cumulative incidence of relevant events was assessed by competing risk analysis. We used a Fine-Gray model adjusted for known prognostic factors, to evaluate the impact of sarcopenia and myosteatosis on mortality, hospitalization, and liver decompensation. RESULTS: At enrolment, 166 patients presented with isolated myosteatosis, 36 with isolated sarcopenia, 135 with combined sarcopenia and myosteatosis and 96 patients showed no muscle changes. The 1-year cumulative incidence of death in patients with either sarcopenia and myosteatosis (13.8%) or isolated myosteatosis (13.4%) was over twice that of patients without muscle changes (5.2%) or with isolated sarcopenia (5.6%). The adjusted subhazard ratio for death in patients with muscle changes was 1.36 (95% CI 0.99, 1.86) (P=0.058). The cumulative incidence of hospitalization was significantly higher in patients with combined sarcopenia and myosteatosis than in patients without muscle changes (adjusted subhazard ratio 1.18, 95% CI 1.04 to 1.35). The cumulative incidence of liver decompensation was greater in patients with combined sarcopenia and myosteatosis (p=0.018) and those with isolated sarcopenia (p=0.046) than in patients without muscle changes. Lastly, we found a strong correlation between function tests and frailty scores with the presence of muscle changes. CONCLUSIONS: Myosteatosis, whether alone or combined with sarcopenia, is highly prevalent in patients with cirrhosis and is associated with significantly worse outcomes. The prognostic role of sarcopenia should always be evaluated in relation to the presence of myosteatosis. IMPACT AND IMPLICATIONS: This study investigates the prognostic role of muscle changes in patients with liver cirrhosis. The novelty of this study is the multicentre, prospective nature and the distinguishing impact of individual muscle changes and their combination on prognosis in cirrhosis. This study highlights the prognostic role of myosteatosis, especially when combined with sarcopenia. On the other hand, the relevance of sarcopenia could be mitigated when considered together with myosteatosis. The implication from these findings is that sarcopenia should never be evaluated individually and that myosteatosis may have a dominant role in the prognosis of patients with liver cirrhosis.

A prospective, multicenter, three-cohort study evaluating contrast-induced acute kidney injury (CI-AKI) in patients with cirrhosis.

BACKGROUND & AIMS: Nephrotoxicity of intravenous iodinated contrast media (ICM) in cirrhosis is still a debated issue, due to scarce, low-quality and conflicting evidence. This study aims to evaluate the incidence and predisposing factors of acute kidney injury (AKI) in patients with cirrhosis undergoing contrast-enhanced computed tomography (CECT). METHODS: We performed a prospective, multicenter, cohort study including 444 inpatients, 148 with cirrhosis (cohort 1) and 163 without cirrhosis (cohort 3) undergoing CECT and 133 with cirrhosis (cohort 2) unexposed to ICM. Kidney function parameters were assessed at T0, 48-72 h (T1), 5 and 7 days after CECT/enrollment. Urinary neutrophil gelatinase-associated lipocalin (U-NGAL) was measured in 50 consecutive patients from cohort 1 and 50 from cohort 2 as an early biomarker of tubular damage. RESULTS: AKI incidence was not significantly increased in patients with cirrhosis undergoing CECT (4.8%, 1.5%, 2.5% in cohorts 1, 2, 3 respectively, p = n.s.). Most AKI cases were mild and transient. The presence of concomitant infections was the only independent predictive factor of contrast-induced AKI (odds ratio 22.18; 95% CI 2.87-171.22; p = 0.003). No significant modifications of U-NGAL between T0 and T1 were detected, neither in cohort 1 nor in cohort 2 (median ΔU-NGAL: +0.2 [-7.6 to +5.5] ng/ml, +0.0 [-6.8 to +9.5] ng/ml, respectively [p = 0.682]). CONCLUSIONS: AKI risk after CECT in cirrhosis is low and not significantly different from that of the general population or of the cirrhotic population unexposed to ICM. It mostly consists of mild and rapidly resolving episodes of renal dysfunction and it is not associated with tubular kidney injury. Patients with ongoing infections appear to be the only ones at higher risk of AKI. IMPACT AND IMPLICATIONS: Nephrotoxicity due to intravenous iodinated contrast media (ICM) in patients with cirrhosis is still a debated issue, as the available evidence is limited and based on very heterogeneous studies, often conducted on small and retrospective cohorts. In this prospective three-cohort study we found that intravenous administration of ICM was associated with a low risk of AKI, similar to that of the general population and to that of patients with cirrhosis unexposed to ICM. Patients with ongoing infections were the only ones to have a significantly increased risk of contrast-induced AKI. Therefore, the actual recommendations of performing contrast imaging studies cautiously in cirrhosis do not seem to be reasonable anymore, with the exception of infected patients, who have a significantly higher risk of contrast-induced AKI.

Sympathetic nervous activation, mitochondrial dysfunction and outcome in acutely decompensated cirrhosis: the metabolomic prognostic models (CLIF-C MET).

BACKGROUND AND AIMS: Current prognostic scores of patients with acutely decompensated cirrhosis (AD), particularly those with acute-on-chronic liver failure (ACLF), underestimate the risk of mortality. This is probably because systemic inflammation (SI), the major driver of AD/ACLF, is not reflected in the scores. SI induces metabolic changes, which impair delivery of the necessary energy for the immune reaction. This investigation aimed to identify metabolites associated with short-term (28-day) death and to design metabolomic prognostic models. METHODS: Two prospective multicentre large cohorts from Europe for investigating ACLF and development of ACLF, CANONIC (discovery, n=831) and PREDICT (validation, n=851), were explored by untargeted serum metabolomics to identify and validate metabolites which could allow improved prognostic modelling. RESULTS: Three prognostic metabolites strongly associated with death were selected to build the models. 4-Hydroxy-3-methoxyphenylglycol sulfate is a norepinephrine derivative, which may be derived from the brainstem response to SI. Additionally, galacturonic acid and hexanoylcarnitine are associated with mitochondrial dysfunction. Model 1 included only these three prognostic metabolites and age. Model 2 was built around 4-hydroxy-3-methoxyphenylglycol sulfate, hexanoylcarnitine, bilirubin, international normalised ratio (INR) and age. In the discovery cohort, both models were more accurate in predicting death within 7, 14 and 28 days after admission compared with MELDNa score (C-index: 0.9267, 0.9002 and 0.8424, and 0.9369, 0.9206 and 0.8529, with model 1 and model 2, respectively). Similar results were found in the validation cohort (C-index: 0.940, 0.834 and 0.791, and 0.947, 0.857 and 0.810, with model 1 and model 2, respectively). Also, in ACLF, model 1 and model 2 outperformed MELDNa 7, 14 and 28 days after admission for prediction of mortality. CONCLUSIONS: Models including metabolites (CLIF-C MET) reflecting SI, mitochondrial dysfunction and sympathetic system activation are better predictors of short-term mortality than scores based only on organ dysfunction (eg, MELDNa), especially in patients with ACLF.

Assessment of glomerular filtration rate in patients with cirrhosis: Available tools and perspectives.

Renal dysfunction often complicates the course of liver disease, resulting in higher morbidity and mortality. The accurate assessment of kidney function in these patients is essential to early identify, stage and treat renal impairment as well as to better predict the prognosis, prioritize the patients for liver transplantation and decide whether to opt for simultaneous liver-kidney transplants. This review analyses the available tools for direct or indirect assessment of glomerular filtration rate, focusing on the flaws and strengths of each method in the specific setting of cirrhosis. The aim is to deliver a clear-cut view on this complex issue, trying to point out which strategies to prefer in this context, especially in the peculiar setting of liver transplantation. Moreover, a glance is given at future promising tools for glomerular filtration rate assessment, including new biomarkers and new equations specifically modelled for the cirrhotic population.

Transjugular intrahepatic porto-systemic shunt in cirrhotic patients with hepatorenal syndrome - chronic kidney disease: Impact on renal function.

BACKGROUND AND AIMS: Transjugular intrahepatic porto-systemic shunt (TIPS) ameliorates renal function in type-2 hepatorenal syndrome (HRS). Available evidence is based on 'old' HRS diagnostic criteria, and not on the current definition of HRS - chronic kidney disease (HRS-CKD). Among patients who underwent TIPS for refractory ascites over the last 12 years, we investigated clinical and renal function evolution of those with HRS-CKD. METHODS: among 212 patients, 41 with HRS-CKD were included. Renal function was evaluated for 12 months after TIPS, along with management of ascites and transplant-free survival (TFS). RESULTS: renal function significantly improved already one week after TIPS [serum creatinine (sCr): 1.37 ± 0.23 vs 1.94 ± 0.54 mg/dl, p< 0.001]; the amelioration was maintained during the whole follow-up and was observed in every CKD stage, defined according to baseline estimated Glomerular Filtration Rate (eGFR). sCr and eGFR became comparable between different CKD stages after only one week, whilst significantly different at baseline. TIPS led to a remarkable improvement in the control of ascites in all CKD stages and no significant differences in TFS were recorded. CONCLUSIONS: TIPS led to an early, substantial and persistent improvement in renal function in patients with HRS-CKD, irrespective of their baseline CKD stage.

Liver involvement in adult-onset Still's disease: our experience in a third level liver unit and review of the literature.

BACKGROUND: Adult-onset Still's Disease (AOSD) is a systemic inflammatory condition, mainly characterized by high spiking fevers, leukocytosis, skin rash, arthralgia and myalgia. Liver involvement is a frequent feature, usually presenting with hepatomegaly and mild liver enzymes abnormalities, which usually normalize after treatment with anti-inflammatory or immunomodulatory drugs given for AOSD. Although uncommon, the onset of severe acute hepatitis and even of life-threatening liver failure is possible and requires a prompt diagnosis and an aggressive therapy and, in some cases, an emergency liver transplantation. The differential diagnosis of the cause of the liver injury can be very challenging in these patients. METHODS: We reviewed the charts of all consecutive patients admitted for acute hepatitis, between January 2019 and December 2019, to the unit of Gastroenterology and Hepatology, Molinette Hospital, Turin, Northern Italy, searching for episodes AOSD-related. RESULTS: In this period, 21 cases of acute hepatitis were recorded with one among them diagnosed as due to AOSD. The incidence was 5% (1/21). This patient was a woman with a recent diagnosis of AOSD who developed a severe acute seronegative biopsy-proven autoimmune hepatitis. She was successfully treated with high-dose methylprednisolone, with a full and stable recovery from the liver injury. CONCLUSIONS: We discuss the incidence, etiology, pathophysiology, diagnosis, and standard of treatment in the clinical management of AOSD with a special attention and a systematic review on the available therapies for severe liver involvement associated with AOSD.

PREDICT identifies precipitating events associated with the clinical course of acutely decompensated cirrhosis.

BACKGROUND & AIMS: Acute decompensation (AD) of cirrhosis may present without acute-on-chronic liver failure (ACLF) (AD-No ACLF), or with ACLF (AD-ACLF), defined by organ failure(s). Herein, we aimed to analyze and characterize the precipitants leading to both of these AD phenotypes. METHODS: The multicenter, prospective, observational PREDICT study (NCT03056612) included 1,273 non-electively hospitalized patients with AD (No ACLF = 1,071; ACLF = 202). Medical history, clinical data and laboratory data were collected at enrolment and during 90-day follow-up, with particular attention given to the following characteristics of precipitants: induction of organ dysfunction or failure, systemic inflammation, chronology, intensity, and relationship to outcome. RESULTS: Among various clinical events, 4 distinct events were precipitants consistently related to AD: proven bacterial infections, severe alcoholic hepatitis, gastrointestinal bleeding with shock and toxic encephalopathy. Among patients with precipitants in the AD-No ACLF cohort and the AD-ACLF cohort (38% and 71%, respectively), almost all (96% and 97%, respectively) showed proven bacterial infection and severe alcoholic hepatitis, either alone or in combination with other events. Survival was similar in patients with proven bacterial infections or severe alcoholic hepatitis in both AD phenotypes. The number of precipitants was associated with significantly increased 90-day mortality and was paralleled by increasing levels of surrogates for systemic inflammation. Importantly, adequate first-line antibiotic treatment of proven bacterial infections was associated with a lower ACLF development rate and lower 90-day mortality. CONCLUSIONS: This study identified precipitants that are significantly associated with a distinct clinical course and prognosis in patients with AD. Specific preventive and therapeutic strategies targeting these events may improve outcomes in patients with decompensated cirrhosis. LAY SUMMARY: Acute decompensation (AD) of cirrhosis is characterized by a rapid deterioration in patient health. Herein, we aimed to analyze the precipitating events that cause AD in patients with cirrhosis. Proven bacterial infections and severe alcoholic hepatitis, either alone or in combination, accounted for almost all (96-97%) cases of AD and acute-on-chronic liver failure. Whilst the type of precipitant was not associated with mortality, the number of precipitant(s) was. This study identified precipitants that are significantly associated with a distinct clinical course and prognosis of patients with AD. Specific preventive and therapeutic strategies targeting these events may improve patient outcomes.

The PREDICT study uncovers three clinical courses of acutely decompensated cirrhosis that have distinct pathophysiology.

BACKGROUND & AIMS: Acute decompensation (AD) of cirrhosis is defined as the acute development of ascites, gastrointestinal hemorrhage, hepatic encephalopathy, infection or any combination thereof, requiring hospitalization. The presence of organ failure(s) in patients with AD defines acute-on-chronic liver failure (ACLF). The PREDICT study is a European, prospective, observational study, designed to characterize the clinical course of AD and to identify predictors of ACLF. METHODS: A total of 1,071 patients with AD were enrolled. We collected detailed pre-specified information on the 3-month period prior to enrollment, and clinical and laboratory data at enrollment. Patients were then closely followed up for 3 months. Outcomes (liver transplantation and death) at 1 year were also recorded. RESULTS: Three groups of patients were identified. Pre-ACLF patients (n = 218) developed ACLF and had 3-month and 1-year mortality rates of 53.7% and 67.4%, respectively. Unstable decompensated cirrhosis (UDC) patients (n = 233) required ≥1 readmission but did not develop ACLF and had mortality rates of 21.0% and 35.6%, respectively. Stable decompensated cirrhosis (SDC) patients (n = 620) were not readmitted, did not develop ACLF and had a 1-year mortality rate of only 9.5%. The 3 groups differed significantly regarding the grade and course of systemic inflammation (high-grade at enrollment with aggravation during follow-up in pre-ACLF; low-grade at enrollment with subsequent steady-course in UDC; and low-grade at enrollment with subsequent improvement in SDC) and the prevalence of surrogates of severe portal hypertension throughout the study (high in UDC vs. low in pre-ACLF and SDC). CONCLUSIONS: Acute decompensation without ACLF is a heterogeneous condition with 3 different clinical courses and 2 major pathophysiological mechanisms: systemic inflammation and portal hypertension. Predicting the development of ACLF remains a major future challenge. CLINICALTRIALS. GOV NUMBER: NCT03056612. LAY SUMMARY: Herein, we describe, for the first time, 3 different clinical courses of acute decompensation (AD) of cirrhosis after hospital admission. The first clinical course includes patients who develop acute-on-chronic liver failure (ACLF) and have a high short-term risk of death - termed pre-ACLF. The second clinical course (unstable decompensated cirrhosis) includes patients requiring frequent hospitalizations unrelated to ACLF and is associated with a lower mortality risk than pre-ACLF. Finally, the third clinical course (stable decompensated cirrhosis), includes two-thirds of all patients admitted to hospital with AD - patients in this group rarely require hospital admission and have a much lower 1-year mortality risk.

Dietary approach and gut microbiota modulation for chronic hepatic encephalopathy in cirrhosis.

Hepatic encephalopathy (HE) is a common and serious neuropsychiatric complication of cirrhosis, acute liver failure, and porto-systemic shunting. HE largely contributes to the morbidity of patients with liver disease, severely affecting the quality of life of both patients and their relatives and being associated with poor prognosis. Its presentation is largely variable, manifesting with a broad spectrum of cognitive abnormalities ranging from subtle cognitive impairment to coma. The pathogenesis of HE is complex and has historically been linked with hyperammonemia. However, in the last years, it has become evident that the interplay of multiple actors, such as intestinal dysbiosis, gut hyperpermeability, and neuroinflammation, is of crucial importance in its genesis. Therefore, HE can be considered a result of a dysregulated gut-liver-brain axis function, where cognitive impairment can be reversed or prevented by the beneficial effects induced by "gut-centric" therapies, such as non-absorbable disaccharides, non-absorbable antibiotics, probiotics, prebiotics, and fecal microbiota transplantation. In this context dietary modifications, by modulating the intestinal milieu, can also provide significant benefit to cirrhotic patients with HE. This review will provide a comprehensive insight into the mechanisms responsible for gut-liver-brain axis dysregulation leading to HE in cirrhosis. Furthermore, it will explore the currently available therapies and the most promising future treatments for the management of patients with HE, with a special focus on the dietary approach.

Management of Pt1 tumours removed by endoscopy during colorectal cancer screening: Outcome and treatment quality indicators.

INTRODUCTION: Limited information is available about outcomes of patients with malignant adenomas endoscopically resected at screening. The aim of the study was to evaluate diagnostic and therapeutic quality indicators and to correlate them with clinical and surgical outcomes. MATERIALS AND METHODS: We reviewed endoscopic and histology characteristics of all pT1 tumours endoscopically removed at the time of colonoscopy assessment in subjects with a positive screening test result in the context of a population-based program. RESULTS: 392 pT1 tumours were completely removed by endoscopy (en-bloc = 86.7%, piecemeal = 13.3%) and the histology report was considered complete in 83.2% of cases. Treatment was limited to endoscopic excision for 120 patients (30.7%, Group 1), 272 (69.3%, Group 2) underwent radicalisation surgery. In patients who had at least 1 lymph node examined, the rate of nodal involvement was 5.4% (13/239); no metastatic node was found in the 21 (27.6%) out of 76 patients with low-risk adenomas, who underwent surgery. CONCLUSION: Risk of nodal involvement in colorectal pT1 tumours is well predicted by known histologic features also in a screening setting, although it was lower than among patients from clinical series. Surgical overtreatment is still significantly present and there is ample room for improvement regarding diagnostic and therapeutic flow-chart.