Brief Article
Copyright ©2013 Baishideng Publishing Group Co.
World J Gastroenterol. Feb 21, 2013; 19(7): 1111-1118
Published online Feb 21, 2013. doi: 10.3748/wjg.v19.i7.1111
Table 1 Demographic and clinical laboratory characteristics of primary biliary cirrhosis patients at the time of entry (n = 262) n (%)
Age (yr), mean ± SD51.5 ± 10.2
Gender (female/male), n240/22
The symptomatic170 (64.9)
Jaundice78 (29.8)
Pruritus69 (26.3)
Persistent fatigue63 (24.0)
Pain in the right hypochondrium40 (15.3)
UDCA responders190 (72.5)
Early PBC19 (7.3)
Extra-hepatic autoimmune diseases96 (36.6)
Sjögren's syndrome54 (20.6)
Autoimmune thyroid diseases25 (9.5)
CREST/systemic sclerosis8 (3.1)/3 (1.1)
Polymyositis/dermatomyositis8 (3.1)/1 (0.4)
Systemic lupus erythematosus4 (1.5)
Psoriasis4 (1.5)
Rheumatoid arthritis3 (1.1)
Takayasu’s arteritis2 (0.8)
Histological stages110 (42.0)
I-II97 (88.2)
III-IV13 (11.8)
UDCA: Ursodeoxycholic acid; PBC: Primary biliary cirrhosis; PBC: Primary biliary cirrhosis; CREST: Comprehensive overview covers symptoms, causes, treatment of this autoimmune disorder.
Table 2 Laboratory characteristics of primary biliary cirrhosis patients at the time of entry (n = 262)
ANA181(69.1)
AMA245 (93.5)
ACA73 (27.9)
ALT (IU/L)91.0 (9-598)
AST (IU/L)86.2 (15-428)
AST/ALT1.10 (0.22-4.85)
ALP (IU/L)348.5 (21-1486)
GGT (IU/L)428.2 (9-2614)
ALB (g/L)40.7 (25-69)
TBil (μmol/L)28.05 (4.90-334.40)
DBil (μmol/L)14.39 (0.34-237.40)
IgG (g/L)16.81 (5.12-56.60)
IgA (g/L)3.15 (0.19-8.84)
IgM (g/L)4.66 (0.41-22.30)
Continuous data were expressed as n (%) or median (range). ANA: Anti-nuclear antibody; AMA: Anti-mitochondrial antibody; ACA: Anti-centromere antibody; ALT: Alanine aminotransferase; AST: Aspartate aminotransferase; ALP: Alkaline phosphatase; GGT: γ-glutamyl-transferase; ALB: Albumin; TBil: Total bilirubin; DBil: Direct bilirubin; Ig: Immunoglobulin.
Table 3 Complications of chronic liver disease in the primary biliary cirrhosis cohort (n = 262) n (%)
Hepatic decompensation62 (23.7)
Portal hypertension62 (23.7)
Hypersplenism44 (16.8)
Esophageal varices47 (17.9)
Variceal bleeding35 (13.4)
Ascites43 (16.4)
Encephalopathy19 (7.3)
Coagulant function abnormality12 (4.6)
Hypoproteinemia35 (13.4)
Spontaneous bacterial peritonitis3 (1.1)
Liver transplantation4 (1.5)
Death-liver related17 (6.5)1
Censor6 (2.3)
Lost to follow-up4 (1.5)
Death from causes unrelated to liver failure2 (0.8)
1One patient who underwent liver transplantation died.
Table 4 Univariate analysis of possible risk factors for hepatic decompensation in primary biliary cirrhosis
Decompensation free (n = 196)Decompensation (n = 62)P value
Age at diagnosis (yr)50.255.6< 0.001
Gender (female/male)178/1859/30.275
Symptoms60.20%80.65%0.003
UDCA treatment85.20%30.65%< 0.001
ANA64.80%80.65%0.019
AMA92.86%95.16%0.731
ACA19.39%56.45%< 0.001
ALT (IU/L)89.696.60.109
AST (IU/L)80.6103.2< 0.001
AST/ALT1.051.270.013
ALP (IU/L)311.6454.1< 0.001
GGT (IU/L)395.4524.30.001
ALB (g/L)41.538.4< 0.001
TBil (μmol/L)20.9248.84< 0.001
DBil (μmol/L)9.2729.06< 0.001
IgG (g/L)16.6117.430.386
IgA (g/L)2.993.620.004
IgM (g/L)4.614.830.285
Histological stage1 (I-II)92.22%66.67%0.008
Early PBC9.70%0.00%0.023
Extra-hepatic autoimmune disease37.24%37.10%0.983
1n = 108. ANA: Anti-nuclear antibody; AMA: Anti-mitochondrial antibody; ACA: Anti-centromere antibody; ALT: Alanine aminotransferase; AST: Aspartate aminotransferase; ALP: Alkaline phosphatase; GGT: γ-glutamyl-transferase; ALB: Albumin; TBil: Total bilirubin; DBil: Direct bilirubin; UDCA: Ursodeoxycholic acid; Ig: Immunoglobulin.
Table 5 Cox regression analysis of risk factors for hepatic decompensation in primary biliary cirrhosis (n = 262)
HRHR 95%CIP value
Poor UDCA response or inconsistent treatment4.2752.423-7.541< 0.001
ACA positivity4.2372.516-7.137< 0.001
AAR1.9061.357-2.678< 0.001
TBil1.0051.002-1.0090.004
ALP1.0011.000-1.0020.008
ACA: Anti-centromere antibody; ALP: Alkaline phosphatase; TBil: Total bilirubin; UDCA: Ursodeoxycholic acid; AAR: Alanine aminotransferase ratio; HR: Hazard risk.