Background: Terlipressin is the first-line pharmacological treatment for hepatorenal syndrome. When terlipressin is unavailable, midodrine/octreotide or norepinephrine, with albumin, represent the alternative treatments. The comparative efficacy of these alternative regimens remains unclear.Objective: To compare the efficacy of midodrine/octreotide to that of norepinephrine for the treatment of patients with hepatorenal syndrome.Methods: In the intensive care setting, sixty patients with hepatorenal syndrome were randomized to initially receive either 0.5 mg/h of norepinephrine (maximum 3 mg/h) or 5 mg of oral midodrine three times/day (maximum 12.5 mg three times/day) plus octreotide (100 μg/6 h) as subcutaneous injection (maximum 200 μg/6 h), together with albumin (20–40 g/day). Treatment was allowed for a maximum of 10 days. Survival was analyzed for up to 30 days. The primary efficacy outcome was the proportion of patients who achieved full response, defined as the return of serum creatinine to a value within 0.3 mg/dl of the baseline at the end of treatment.Results: There was a significantly higher rate of full response in the norepinephrine group (15/26, 57.60%) than the midodrine/octreotide group (5/25, 20%) (p = 0.006). Eleven (42.30%) patients in the norepinephrine group and 6 (24%) in the midodrine/octreotide group survived (p = 0.166).Conclusion: Norepinephrine plus albumin is significantly more effective than midodrine and octreotide plus albumin in improving renal function in patients with hepatorenal syndrome.(ClinicalTrials.gov, identifier: NCT03455322).https://clinicaltrials.gov/ct2/show/NCT03455322?cond = Hepatorenal+Syndrome&cntry = EG&draw = 2&rank = 1.
Background and aim Liver transplantation (LT) has emerged as an established therapeutic option for patients with chronic liver disease. Patients with end-stage liver disease are at high risk of infection with multidrug-resistant organisms, which may affect the outcome of LT. The aim of this study was to evaluate the impact of pre-transplant infection on the outcome of living-donor LT. Methods Prospective follow-up was done for 50 patients with chronic liver disease who had had LT performed from September 2013 to December 2017. We divided patients into group 1 (patients who had had infection within 3 months before transplantation with adequate treatment [n=20]), and group 2 (patients without infection [n=30]). Both groups were followed for 4 months post-operatively. Results Patients with high Model for End-Stage Liver Disease scores were more susceptible to infection pre- and post-operatively, and chest infection was the most common infection pre-transplant. There were no significant statistical differences regarding hospital and ICU stay and post-operative course between the groups, but the mortality rate was higher in group 1 (40%) than in group 2 (23.3%), and the causes of mortality in the group 1 were mainly due to medical causes (infections and sepsis, 75%) versus 28.6% in group 2. Conclusion Liver-cell failure and concomitant infection 3 months before LT with adequate treatment had no significant statistical differences regarding hospital, ICU stay, or medical complications, but post-operative infection and mortality rate were more frequent in group 1 and the causes of mortality were mainly medical.
Background: Procalcitonin (PCT) has been increasingly used as a biomarker of bacterial infection and as a tool to guide antimicrobial therapy. Despite its increased use, data in patients with solid organ transplants are limited.The study aim is to assess the frequency of rising procalcitonin associated with infectious complications in immunosuppressed living donated liver transplantation.Methods: A single center, retrospective observational study. Preoperative patients' demographic data, operative, anesthetic data and postoperative clinical course are analyzed till discharge from intensive care unit.Results: Sixty patients were classi ed according to the culture results' into a positive culture group & a negative one, then following up sepsis variables in each group. Total leukocyte count (TLC) and procalcitonin (PCT) were high in the positive culture group in the rst 4 and 5 days respectively and was statistically signi cant (P-value < 0.05).PCT at a cutoff value ≥ 9ng/ml had higher speci city, especially on day three postoperative (90.7%). The TLC cutoff value of ≥ 17.3/mm 3 on day one; had the speci city of > 90%.Conclusions: following up PCT level on day one with TLC is essential and will help to detect sepsis and guide early antimicrobial initiation post liver transplantation.
Background: Procalcitonin (PCT) has been increasingly used as a biomarker of bacterial infection and as a tool to guide antimicrobial therapy. Despite its increased use, data in patients with solid organ transplants are limited. The study aim is to assess the frequency of rising procalcitonin associated with infectious complications in immunosuppressed living donated liver transplantation.Methods: A single center, retrospective observational study. Preoperative patients' demographic data, operative, anesthetic data and postoperative clinical course are analyzed till discharge from intensive care unit.Results: Sixty patients were classified according to the culture results' into a positive culture group & a negative one, then following up sepsis variables in each group. Total leukocyte count (TLC) and procalcitonin (PCT) were high in the positive culture group in the first 4 and 5 days respectively and was statistically significant (P-value < 0.05).PCT at a cutoff value ≥ 9ng/ml had higher specificity, especially on day three postoperative (90.7%). The TLC cutoff value of ≥ 17.3/mm3on day one; had the specificity of > 90%. Conclusions: following up PCT level on day one with TLC is essential and will help to detect sepsis and guide early antimicrobial initiation post liver transplantation.Trial registration: NHTMRI, NCT03389360. Registered 7 February, 2018,https://register.clinicaltrials.gov/prs/app/action/SelectProtocol?sid=S0007O6F&selectaction=Edit&uid=U0003W0U&ts=2&cx=fwyacz
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