Clinical characteristics of reflux esophagitis among patients with liver cirrhosis: a case-control study

Gastro‑oesophageal reflux disease in liver cirrhosis: Possible pathogenesis and clinical intervention (Review)

Oesophageal variceal bleeding is a common complication of decompensated liver cirrhosis (LC). Some studies have reported that reflux oesophagitis (RE) is a risk factor for upper gastrointestinal bleeding, and greatly impacts the quality of life. However, the frequency and mechanism of gastro-oesophageal reflux disease (GERD) in LC remain unclear. The present review explored the possible pathogenesis, and analysed the advantages and disadvantages of the interventional measures and the need for implementation of these measures. By combining the comprehensive terms associated with LC, GERD and RE, EMBASE, Medline/PubMed and the Cochrane Library were systematically searched. The underlying pathological mechanism of GERD in LC was summarized: Transient relaxation of the lower oesophageal sphincter, delayed gastric emptying, increased intra-abdominal pressure, increased intragastric pressure and excessive nitric oxide production destroyed the 'anti-reflux barrier', causing gastric content reflux. Proton pump inhibitors (PPIs) have been widely used empirically to lower the risk of oesophageal venous rupture and bleeding. However, long-term use of acid inhibitors in patients with LC may induce complications, such as spontaneous bacterial peritonitis. The metabolic half-life of PPIs is prolonged in patients with severe liver function impairment. Therefore, the indications for using acid inhibitors lack clarity. However, after endoscopic oesophageal variceal eradication, additional benefits may be gained from the long-term use of PPIs in small doses.

Differential role of chronic liver diseases on the incidence of cancer: a longitudinal analysis among 248,224 outpatients in Germany

BACKGROUND

Chronic liver diseases, especially chronic hepatitis, are a known risk factor for the development of liver cancer. However, the risk of total cancer development and malignant potential from these diseases is largely unknown. Systematic data on the risk of cancer development from these diseases are missing. Therefore, the goal of this study is to analyze the risk of total cancer development in chronic liver diseases.

METHODS

A cohort of 15,706 patients with chronic hepatitis and 15,706 patients without hepatitis were matched by propensity scoring from outpatient practices in Germany over a period of 15 years. Cox regression models were conducted to study the association between alcoholic hepatitis, autoimmune hepatitis, hepatitis B, hepatitis C and cancer incidence, including liver, other digestive organs, skin, prostate, breast and lymphoid and hematopoietic tissue cancer.

RESULTS

Within 10 years of the index date, 19.3% of patients with alcoholic hepatitis and 13.4% of non-hepatitis individuals were diagnosed with cancer (log-rank p = 0.035). These proportions were 15.0 vs. 9.9% (p = 0.078) for autoimmune hepatitis, 8.7 vs. 7.1% (p = 0.015) for hepatitis B, and 12.7 vs. 7.6% (p < 0.001) for hepatitis C. In regression analyses, only alcoholic hepatitis (HR: 1.84, 95% CI 1.32-2.54) and hepatitis C (HR: 2.10, 95% CI 1.77-2.50) were significantly associated with increased risk of cancer. There was a very strong positive association between hepatitis C and liver cancer (HR: 78.2 (95% CI 10.9-560.7). Furthermore, hepatitis C was associated with an increased risk of respiratory organ cancer (HR: 2.59, 95% CI 1.42-4.73).

CONCLUSION

This study confirms the strong association between chronic hepatitis and liver cancer, but also with an overall elevated cancer risk, and especially of cancer in the respiratory tract in patients with chronic hepatitis C.