Management of hepatic encephalopathy in Germany: a survey among physicians.
Z Gastroenterol
; 58(1): 49-56, 2020 Jan.
Article
em En
| MEDLINE
| ID: mdl-31931540
ABSTRACT
BACKGROUND:
Hepatic encephalopathy (HE) is a severe complication of liver cirrhosis with impairment of quality of life and prognosis. Management patterns among physicians have not been investigated yet.METHODS:
A questionnaire containing 17 questions was sent out to 1468 gastroenterologists and 120 general practitioners (GPs). It included questions regarding diagnostic, therapeutic, and management strategies used in patients with overt HE (OHE) and covert HE (CHE).RESULTS:
The response rate was 12â% (nâ=â172) for gastroenterologists and 45â% (nâ=â54) for GPs. Of gastroenterologists, 26.7â% examine patients with an initial diagnosis of liver cirrhosis regarding HE. Gastroenterologists favored a combination of different testing strategies (27.9â%) and clinical examination (23.0â%), while the biggest part of the GPs use clinical examination (55.3â%); 63.7â% of gastroenterologists and 28.3â% of GPs give correct nutritional advices to patients with HE. Treatment strategies for acute bouts of OHE and secondary prophylaxis varied widely in both groups. Preferred medication was lactulose followed by rifaximin or a combination therapy. More than half of the GPs (53.7â%) were not familiar with minimal HE (MHE). About one-third of both groups never tried to diagnose MHE.CONCLUSION:
Our data strongly indicate that management of HE is very heterogeneous among gastroenterologists as well as selected GPs working in Germany and not driven by evidence-based international guidelines. Thus, the national guideline is more than welcome.
Texto completo:
1
Coleções:
01-internacional
Base de dados:
MEDLINE
Assunto principal:
Padrões de Prática Médica
/
Fármacos Gastrointestinais
/
Encefalopatia Hepática
/
Clínicos Gerais
/
Gastroenterologistas
/
Cirrose Hepática
Tipo de estudo:
Guideline
/
Prognostic_studies
/
Qualitative_research
Aspecto:
Patient_preference
Limite:
Humans
País/Região como assunto:
Europa
Idioma:
En
Revista:
Z Gastroenterol
Ano de publicação:
2020
Tipo de documento:
Article
País de afiliação:
Alemanha