View clinical trials related to Cirrhosis.
Filter by:The prevalence of hepatic cirrhosis in Romania is very high, with a 10-year mortality of 34-66%. Upward trend of mortality is observed. It is known that cirrhosis is associated with cardiac abnormalities. These can induce several complications of cirrhosis, and increase postoperative mortality. Therefore, it is a major public health issue and research in this field should be a priority. Few studies evaluated the cardiac function in cirrhotic patients, using only conventional echocardiography. However, this allows only the late diagnosis of cardiac dysfunction, which might be already irreversible. Consequently, description of new parameters, which could detect early dysfunction, becomes essential. There is no study designed to estimate intrinsic myocardial properties in cirrhosis. New methods (Tissue Doppler and Speckle-tracking echocardiography) could be essential to detect early cardiac dysfunction. The exact role of biological markers in the diagnosis of cardiac dysfunction remains to be clarified. Impaired cardiac function coupled with augmented vascular function could be the model for cirrhotic patients. This type of ventriculo-arterial interaction has never been described. The main objectives of our project are: 1. to investigate the mechanisms which lead to cardiac dysfunction; 2. to describe new parameters for the early diagnosis of cirrhotic cardiomyopathy; 3. to describe the type of ventriculo-arterial interaction; 4. the association between biological markers and echo parameters.
This study will evaluate the antiviral efficacy of combination therapy with sofosbuvir (SOF) plus ribavirin (RBV) for 48 weeks in adults with compensated and decompensated chronic hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection. Approximately 50 adults will be randomized (1:1) to receive study drug for 48 weeks or take part in an untreated observational arm for the first 24 weeks followed by study drug for another 48 weeks.
Probiotics, due to their ability to modulate intestinal flora, intestinal permeability and immune response, could decrease bacterial translocation and improve immune system alterations in cirrhosis. This could lead not only to improvement in liver function and to prevent bacterial infections and other complications but also to improve CD and to avoid its consequences falls, HRQoL deterioration). Recently, the investigators have observed that VSL#3 administration to rats with experimental cirrhosis decreases bacterial translocation, inflammatory response and ascites formation, without changes in intestinal flora. This suggests an improvement in intestinal barrier that deserves further investigation. VSL#3, through decreasing intestinal bacterial translocation and immune system modulation, could improve cognitive function and prevent the consequences of CD, including falls and HRQoL deterioration, in patients with cirrhosis.
Cirrhotic cardiomyopathy is defined as a chronic cardiac dysfunction in patients with cirrhosis. It is suspected that this specific cardiac dysfunction contributes to the onset of complications in liver disease. The purpose of this prospective, randomized trial is to determine whether metoprolol succinate can revert cardiac dysfunction secondary to cirrhosis (cirrhotic cardiomyopathy), and prevent complications (renal dysfunction, mortality). A total of 100 patients with cirrhotic cardiomyopathy will be randomized (Group R) to receive metoprolol succinate or placebo; other 25 patients without cirrhotic cardiomyopathy (Group F) will only be followed up without medication. All patients will be evaluated in the beginning and again after six months. The assessment protocol includes clinical evaluation, electrocardiogram, echocardiogram, laboratory analysis and life quality questionaire. The end points will be cardiac remodeling, electrophysiologic changes, sympathetic activity, laboratory issue changes, renal function, quality of life, and mortality.
The alpha2 agonist dexmedetomidine is a new sedative agent combined with the analgesic qualities and lack of respiratory depression. Patients sedated with dexmedetomidine could be easily roused, these advances shows dexmedetomidine may be a effective and safe sedative agent. But some studies showed some adversely effects of dexmedetomidine on haemodynamics (such as bradycardia, hypotension), the investigators want to further research the effects of dexmedetomidine on haemodynamics, such as Cardiac Output (CO), Systemic Venous Resistance Index(SVRI), and so on. Propofol is widely used sedative agent in ICU, it also has adversely effects like bradycardia and hypotension, so the investigators want to compare the effect of dexmedetomidine with propofol on haemodynamics after major abdominal surgery. Expect to further research the mechanism of haemodynamics of dexmedetomidine.
Our long-term objective is to develop a new tool based on a (molecular-biology) integrated imaging technology able to characterize and categorize hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) patients in need of liver transplant (LT). To this end, our study aims at correlating specific imaging traits and fractional growth of individual tumors collected over a restricted time frame (T0 and at week 7 after first tumor detection), with a "molecular signature", obtained by custom microarray, histochemical and cytokine analysis. This should allow us to translate a series of purely morphologic information into a meaningful pathobiologic data sets. Validation of the integrated molecular-imaging tool will be performed prospectively by correlating the imaging-molecular data with HCC outcome in term of survival and disease-free survival after down staging procedures.
Autoimmune hepatitis is a chronic disease of the liver caused by an alteration of the immune response that attacks the body's own hepatocytes, progressively, leading to cirrhosis and liver failure. There are few studies on dietary management in hepatitis and most of theme have focused on micronutrients specifically vitamin D to prevent osteoporosis, and decreased symptoms of other diseases associated, but few recommendations have been made regarding a complete dietary approach. Fiber has been proven to increase the excretion of nitrogen products and consequently reduce its blood levels and an adequate protein intake (1.2g/kg) has shown to decrease endogenous catabolism in cirrhotics patients. The implementation of a high protein high fiber nutrition plan and improves nutritional status of patients with autoimmune cirrhosis.
Patients with cirrhosis can have abnormalities in laboratory tests reflecting changes in primary and secondary haemostasis. Such changes have been considered particularly relevant in the bleeding complications that occur in cirrhosis. However, several studies have shown that routine diagnostic tests are not clinically useful to stratify bleeding risk in patients with cirrhosis. Moreover, treatments used to increase platelet count or to modulate platelet function could potentially do harm. Consequently the optimal management of bleeding complications is still a matter of discussion. Moreover, in the last two decades there has been an increased recognition that not only bleeding but also thrombosis complicates the clinical course of cirrhosis. Over the last years, emerge that in vivo platelet function and coagulation cascade might be modulated by an alteration of pro-oxidant and antioxidant balance. Thus It has previously been demonstrated that chronic liver diseases are characterized by increased oxidative stress state. Aim of the study is to analyse the relationship between oxidative stress, haemostatic balance and clinical complications in cirrhosis.
Protein-energy malnutrition and muscle wasting are a common finding among patients with liver cirrhosis. Its prevalence may range from 50-90% depending on the methods used for nutritional assessment. Even stable cirrhotic patients referred as Child A have muscle depletion and the majority of patients classified as Child C have significant depletion. Malnutrition has been shown to be related to several complications of cirrhosis Despite the importance of nutritional status in patient's outcome, there is no gold standard for nutritional assessment. Traditional techniques used in healthy subjects to assess nutritional status cannot be used in cirrhotic patients due especially to ascites and peripheral edema, and altered rates of biochemical markers due to liver failure. Bioelectrical impedance vector analysis has emerged as a useful method to assess body composition and nutritional status especially in patients at the extremes of body weight (fluid overload, excess of adipose tissue, etc.). The aim of this study is to evaluate whether malnutrition assessed by bioelectrical impedance vector analysis is related to the development of hepatic encephalopathy
Infections are frequent life-threatening events in patients with cirrhosis, occurring at least in 35% of hospitalized patients and accounting for 20% of inpatients death. Among cirrhotics, ascitic patients have the highest risk of death for sepsis. At the admission, no clear-cut clinical and biochemical features are helpful in diagnosing and prognostically stratifying those patients with sepsis. Procalcitonin (PCT)is a breakthrough marker presenting high sensibility and specificity in diagnosing bacterial infections in different clinical settings. The purpose of this study is to evaluate PCT as a diagnostic and prognostic tool for sepsis in hospitalized cirrhotic patients with ascitic decompensation.