Attitudes of Liver and Palliative Care Clinicians toward Specialist Palliative Care Consultation for Patients with End-Stage Liver Disease

Palliative care in terminally ill advanced chronic liver disease patients

While mortality rates from advanced chronic liver disease (ACLD) are rapidly increasing, patients with an advanced disease stage have a comparable or even higher symptom burden than those with other life-limiting diseases. Although evidence is limited there is increasing recognition of the need to improve care for patients with ACLD; however, there are many limiting factors to providing good palliative care for these patients, including unpredictable disease progression, the misconception of palliative care and end of life care as being equivalent, a lack of confidence in prescribing medication and a lack of time and resources. Health professionals working with these patients need to develop the skills to ensure effective palliative care, while referral to specialized palliative care centers should be reserved for patients with complex needs. Basic palliative care, along with active disease management, is best delivered by the treating hepatologists. This includes discussions about disease progression and advance care planning, alongside the active management of disease complications. Liver disease is closely associated with significant social, psychological, and financial burdens for patients and their caregivers. Strategies to engage the discussion in multidisciplinary teams early in disease progression help to ensure addressing these issues proactively. This review summarizes the evidence on palliative care for patients with ACLD, provides examples of current best practice and offers suggestions on how disease-modifying and palliative care can coexist, to ensure that patients do not miss opportunities for quality of life improving interventions.

Palliative care in patients with hepatocellular carcinoma: Results from a survey among hepatologists and palliative care physicians

BACKGROUND

Delays and limitations of palliative care in patients with liver transplantation-ineligible end-stage hepatocellular carcinoma according to Barcelona Clinic Liver Cancer staging system may be explained by different perceptions between hepatologists and palliative care physicians in the absence of shared guidelines.

AIM

To assess physicians' attitudes toward palliative care in end-stage hepatocellular carcinoma and to understand what the obstacles are to more effective management and co-shared between palliative care physicians and hepatologists.

DESIGN

Members of the Italian Association for the Study of Liver Disease and the Italian Society of Palliative Care were invited to a web-based survey to investigate practical management attitude for patients with liver transplant-ineligible end-stage hepatocellular carcinoma.

PARTICIPANTS

Physician members of the of the two associations, representing several hospitals and services in the country.

RESULTS

Ninety-seven hepatologists and 70 palliative care physicians completed the survey: >80% regularly follow 1-19 patients; 58% of hepatologists collaborate with palliative care physicians in the management of patients, 55% of palliative care physicians take care of patients without the aid of hepatologists. Management of cirrhosis differed significantly between the two groups in terms of prescription of albumin, esophagogastroduodenoscopy, anti-viral treatment, anticoagulation, indication to paracentesis and management of encephalopathy. Full-dose acetaminophen is widely used among hepatologists, while opioids are commonly used by both categories, at full dosage, regardless of liver function.

CONCLUSIONS

This survey highlights significant differences in the approach to patients with liver transplantation-ineligible end-stage hepatocellular carcinoma, reinforcing the need for shared guidelines and further studies on palliative care in the setting.

Palliative care and end stage liver disease: A survey study comparing perspectives of hepatology and palliative care physicians and clinical scenarios that could require palliative care intervention

BACKGROUND AND AIMS

The prevalence and mortality of chronic liver disease has risen significantly. In end stage liver disease (ESLD) the survival of patients is approximately 2 years. Despite the poor prognosis and high symptom burden of these patients, integration of palliative care is reduced. We aim to analyze the agreement between palliative care and hepatology physicians of clinical scenarios that could require palliative care intervention.

METHODS

A cross-sectional study was conducted. Palliative care and hepatology physicians were surveyed. Using a five-point Likert scale, their perceptions of palliative care in ESLD were rated. Their agreement in clinical scenarios that could require palliative care intervention were evaluated. Analyses were conducted to assess any differences by primary role (hepatology vs. palliative care) and length of practice (<10 years vs. 10 years).

RESULTS

A total of 123 responses were obtained: 52% from palliative care and 48% from hepatology. The majority (66.7%) work in the field for up to ten years. There was a great consensus in 4 of the 8 clinical scenarios. In scenarios with less consensus, the area of activity and length of practice influence the reliance of physicians on palliative care. Involvement of palliative care in ESLD was considered "rare" by 30% and 61% consider difficult to predict the prognosis. More than 90% support medical training in both areas of activity.

CONCLUSION

The current involvement of palliative care is considered low, but there are clinical conditions that reveal a clear consensus and there's a unanimous view of the relevance of training.

Acute kidney injury in patients with cirrhosis: Acute Disease Quality Initiative (ADQI) and International Club of Ascites (ICA) joint multidisciplinary consensus meeting

Patients with cirrhosis are prone to developing acute kidney injury (AKI), a complication associated with a markedly increased in-hospital morbidity and mortality, along with a risk of progression to chronic kidney disease. Whereas patients with cirrhosis are at increased risk of developing any phenotype of AKI, hepatorenal syndrome (HRS), a specific form of AKI (HRS-AKI) in patients with advanced cirrhosis and ascites, carries an especially high mortality risk. Early recognition of HRS-AKI is crucial since administration of splanchnic vasoconstrictors may reverse the AKI and serve as a bridge to liver transplantation, the only curative option. In 2023, a joint meeting of the International Club of Ascites (ICA) and the Acute Disease Quality Initiative (ADQI) was convened to develop new diagnostic criteria for HRS-AKI, to provide graded recommendations for the work-up, management and post-discharge follow-up of patients with cirrhosis and AKI, and to highlight priorities for further research.

Novel approaches in the medical management of compensated cirrhosis

INTRODUCTION

Classically, clinical practice guidelines and expert recommendations have focused on the management of decompensated cirrhotic patients, so we focused this review on improving care for compensated cirrhotic patients who are followed up in outpatient clinics.

AREAS COVERED

We reviewed the current methods for establishing liver function, the diagnosis and management of advanced chronic liver disease and clinically significant portal hypertension as well as the prevention of its complications, with special attention to covert hepatic encephalopathy, we also paid attention to the extrahepatic complications of cirrhosis and the palliative care. All this from the perspective of evidence-based medicine and trying to empower precision medicine. The literature search was undertaken by PubMed with 'cirrhosis,' 'advanced chronic liver disease,' 'liver function,' 'portal hypertension,' 'covert hepatic encephalopathy,' 'minimal hepatic encephalopathy,' 'palliative care' as MeSH terms.

EXPERT OPINION

We must offer compensated cirrhotic patients specific care and measures to prevent the progression of the disease and the appearance of its complications beyond the calculation of liver function and imaging screening for hepatocellular carcinoma that we perform every six months. Entities that have typically received little attention, such as covert hepatic encephalopathy, extrahepatic complications and symptoms of cirrhosis, and palliative care, must come to the spotlight.

Rates, patterns, and predictors of specialty palliative care consultation among patients with acute-on-chronic liver failure

Background & Aims

There is growing acceptance that principles of palliative care should be integrated into the management of serious illnesses affecting the liver, such as acute-on-chronic liver failure (ACLF). However, rates, patterns, and predictors of specialty palliative care consultation among patients with ACLF have not been well-described.

Methods

We performed a retrospective cohort study of patients hospitalized with ACLF between 1/1/2008 and 12/31/2018 using the VOCAL cohort. Patients were followed until 6/2021. We used mixed-effects regression analyses to identify significant patient and facility factors associated with palliative care consultation. We examined timing of consultation, the influence of ACLF characteristics, and facility-level variation on receipt of palliative care consultation.

Results

We identified 21,987 patients hospitalized with ACLF, of whom 30.5% received specialty palliative care consultation. Higher ACLF grade (ACLF-2 [odds ratio (OR) 1.82, 95% CI 1.67-1.99], ACLF-3 [OR 3.06, 95% CI 2.76-3.40]), prior specialty palliative care consultation (OR 2.62, 95% CI 2.36-2.91), and hepatocellular carcinoma (OR 2.10, 95% CI 1.89-2.33) were associated with consultation. Consultation occurred latest and closest to the time of death for patients with ACLF-3 compared to ACLF-1 and ACLF-2. Significant facility-level variation in consultation persisted among patients with ACLF-3, despite adjusting for multiple patient and facility factors.

Conclusion

In this large cohort of hospitalized patients with ACLF, specialty palliative care consultation was rare, more common in patients with higher grade ACLF, and tended to occur closer to the time of death for the sickest patients. Greater attention should be placed on earlier integration of palliative care during acute hospitalizations in patients with ACLF.

Impact and implications

Though palliative care consultation is recommended for patients with acute-on-chronic liver failure, there is no data demonstrating how often this occurs during hospitalizations, on a population level. We found that consultation occurs in only 30.5% of patients and occurs later for patients with grade 3 acute-on-chronic liver failure. Our data should provoke clinicians to urgently consider quality improvement efforts to integrate palliative care into the management of these seriously ill patients.

Improving palliative and supportive care in advanced cirrhosis: the HepatoCare model of integrated collaborative care

BACKGROUND

Patients with advanced cirrhosis experience an unpredictable disease trajectory but are infrequently referred to palliative care (PC) services and rarely undertake advance care planning (ACP).

AIM

We assessed whether a novel model of care increased provision of meaningful PC in advanced cirrhosis compared with standard of care (SOC).

METHODS

Thirty consecutive hepatology clinic outpatients with advanced cirrhosis, meeting one or more cirrhosis-related PC referral criteria, consented to treatment in the HepatoCare clinic (PC physician, specialist liver nurse, pharmacist) in parallel with usual specialist hepatology care. A control cohort of 30 consecutive outpatients with advanced cirrhosis undergoing SOC treatment was retrospectively identified for comparison. The primary outcome was provision of meaningful PC using HepatoCare versus SOC. Additional clinical outcomes were assessed over 12 months or until death and significant differences were identified.

RESULTS

The intervention and control cohorts had similarly advanced cirrhosis (mean Child-Pugh scores 8.7 vs 8.2, P = 0.46; mean model for end-stage liver disease scores 14.4 vs 14.6, P = 0.88) but a lower 12-month mortality rate (33% HepatoCare vs 67% SOC; P = 0.02). The intervention cohort experienced higher uptake of formal ACP (100% vs 25% for the control cohort) and outpatient PC referral (100% vs 40%), and were more likely to die at home or in a PC bed/hospice (80% vs 30%). The majority of the HepatoCare cohort (81%) had medications safely deprescribed and experienced fewer unplanned admission days (470 vs 794).

CONCLUSIONS

HepatoCare is a novel multidisciplinary model of care that integrates effective PC and specialist hepatology management to improve outcomes in advanced cirrhosis.

Palliative clinical trials in advanced chronic liver disease: Challenges and opportunities

Patients with advanced chronic liver disease have a complex symptom burden and many are not candidates for curative therapy. Despite this, provision of palliative interventions remains woefully inadequate, with an insufficient evidence base being a contributory factor. Designing and conducting palliative interventional trials in advanced chronic liver disease remains challenging for a multitude of reasons. In this manuscript we review past and ongoing palliative interventional trials. We identify barriers and facilitators and offer guidance on addressing these challenges. We hope that this will reduce the inequity in palliative care provision in advanced chronic liver disease.

Inequity in end-of-life care for patients with chronic liver disease in England

BACKGROUND AND AIMS

The World Health Assembly recommends integration of palliative care into treatment of patients with any life-limiting condition, yet patients with non-malignant disease are less likely to receive specialist palliative care (SPC). This study compares SPC offered to patients with hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) versus patients with chronic liver disease without HCC (CLD without HCC).

METHODS

Patients who died from CLD or HCC over 5 years (2013-2017) in England were identified using a dataset linking national data on all hospital admissions (Hospital Episode Statistics - HES) with national mortality data from the Office for National Statistics (HES - ONS). The primary outcome was the proportion of patients who received inpatient SPC in their last year of life (LYOL). Secondary outcomes were (1) early inpatient SPC input and (2) the proportion dying in a hospice. The outcomes were compared between patients with HCC and CLD without HCC.

RESULTS

29 669 patients were identified, 8143 of whom had HCC. Patients with HCC were significantly more likely to receive inpatient SPC input-adjusted OR 3.74 (95% CI 3.52-3.97) and early inpatient SPC input-adjusted OR 7.26 (95% CI 6.38-8.25) and die in a hospice OR 8.23 (95% CI 7.33-9.24) than patients with CLD without HCC.

CONCLUSIONS

These data highlight the stark inequity in access to SPC services between patients with HCC and patients with CLD without HCC in England. Addressing these inequities will improve end-of-life care for patients with CLD.

Use of albumin infusion for cirrhosis-related complications: An international position statement

Background & Aims

Numerous studies have evaluated the role of human albumin (HA) in managing various liver cirrhosis-related complications. However, their conclusions remain partially controversial, probably because HA was evaluated in different settings, including indications, patient characteristics, and dosage and duration of therapy.

Methods

Thirty-three investigators from 19 countries with expertise in the management of liver cirrhosis-related complications were invited to organise an International Special Interest Group. A three-round Delphi consensus process was conducted to complete the international position statement on the use of HA for treatment of liver cirrhosis-related complications.

Results

Twelve clinically significant position statements were proposed. Short-term infusion of HA should be recommended for the management of hepatorenal syndrome, large volume paracentesis, and spontaneous bacterial peritonitis in liver cirrhosis. Its effects on the prevention or treatment of other liver cirrhosis-related complications should be further elucidated. Long-term HA administration can be considered in specific settings. Pulmonary oedema should be closely monitored as a potential adverse effect in cirrhotic patients receiving HA infusion.

Conclusions

Based on the currently available evidence, the international position statement suggests the potential benefits of HA for the management of multiple liver cirrhosis-related complications and summarises its safety profile. However, its optimal timing and infusion strategy remain to be further elucidated.

Impact and implications

Thirty-three investigators from 19 countries proposed 12 position statements on the use of human albumin (HA) infusion in liver cirrhosis-related complications. Based on current evidence, short-term HA infusion should be recommended for the management of HRS, LVP, and SBP; whereas, long-term HA administration can be considered in the setting where budget and logistical issues can be resolved. However, pulmonary oedema should be closely monitored in cirrhotic patients who receive HA infusion.

The Usefulness of Mayo End-stage Liver Disease (MELD) and MELD-Sodium (MELD-Na) Scores for Predicting Mortality in Cirrhotic Patients With Spontaneous Bacterial Peritonitis

BACKGROUND

Spontaneous bacterial peritonitis (SBP) is a common infection in patients with cirrhosis and ascites. Currently, the accuracy of the model for end-stage liver disease (MELD) and MELD-sodium (MELD-Na) as prognostic scores in this cohort is unclear. This study aimed to evaluate and compare the accuracy of MELD and MELD-Na for predicting 90-day mortality and determine whether the mortality risk estimates they provide accurately reflect the poor prognosis of patients with SBP Methods: Patients with cirrhosis and SBP were retrospectively identified from ascitic fluid samples sent for microscopy, culture and sensitivity analysis (1/1/18-31/12/20) and a previous audit. MELD and MELD-Na scores at diagnosis were calculated and associations with 90-day mortality were assessed using univariate analysis. Receiver operator characteristic curves were compared, and standardised mortality ratios (SMRs) were calculated by comparing the number of deaths observed to the number predicted by MELD and MELD-Na.

RESULTS

Of the 567 patients identified, 15 patients with cirrhosis and SBP were included. The 90-day mortality rate was 66.7% (10/15). Only concurrent hyponatremia (<135mmol/L) was associated with mortality (6/10 non-survivors vs 0/5 survivors, p=0.04). The difference in MELD and MELD-Na's C-statistic was not significant: 0.66 (95% Cl:0.35-0.98) vs 0.74 (95% Cl:0.47-1.0) respectively (p=0.72). Patients with a MELD-Na >18.5 had significantly higher 90-day mortality than patients with MELD-Na ≤18.5 (88.9% (8/9) vs. 33.3% (2/6), p=0.05). The SMR (95% Cl) for each MELD decile evaluated was 33.3 (0-79.5), 11.1 (0.2-22.0) and 3.4 (0-7.0) for scores ≤9,10-19 and 20-29 respectively. For each MELD-Na tertile, these were: 25 (0-59.6), 5.2 (0.1-10.3) and 2.7 (0.1-8.1) for scores <17,17-26, ≥27 respectively.

CONCLUSION

In a small cohort of patients with cirrhosis and SBP, the MELD's accuracy in predicting 90-day mortality was limited. MELD-Na's accuracy was higher but not significantly. Both scores consistently underestimated participants' mortality, therefore future studies could evaluate the accuracy of alternative prognostic scores in this patient group.

Healthcare burden and outcomes of hepatorenal syndrome among cirrhosis-related hospitalisations in the US

BACKGROUND

Hepatorenal syndrome (HRS) contributes to significant morbidity and mortality in hospitalised patients with cirrhosis.

AIMS

To examine recent trends, magnitude and outcomes of HRS in the National Inpatient Sample (NIS) database METHODS: Among the NIS database on cirrhosis hospitalisations (2016-2019) due to alcohol (ALD), chronic viral hepatitis (CVH), or NASH and complicated by acute kidney injury (AKI) were analyzed.

RESULTS

Of 113,454 hospitalisations, 18,735 (16.5%) had HRS (mean age 56 years, 36% females, 68% whites, 80% ALD, 7% NASH) with a stable trend over time. Among 1:1 propensity-matched 36,090 hospitalisations, the odds of HRS were 12% higher in NASH versus CVH. Based on weighted national estimates, there were 27,180 (8.3 per 100,000 US population) HRS hospitalisations in 2019, with economic burden of $4.2 billion USD. Mean hospitalisation and total charges (ALD vs. CVH vs. NASH) were 11 versus 10.8 versus 9.2 days and 151,000 versus 157,000 versus 120,000 USD, respectively; p < 0.001. In-hospital mortality was 18.9%, higher in HRS (25.8 vs. 12%, p < 0.001), and decreased by 15% annually. Survivors were more likely to be discharged to short- or long-term care facilities (HRS vs. non-HRS [42 vs. 27%, p < 0.001]); only 28.7% received palliative care.

CONCLUSION

HRS was the cause of AKI in 16.5% of patients hospitalised with cirrhosis and conferred significant healthcare burden with 27,180 HRS hospitalisations in 2019 and requiring an estimated 4.2 billion USD for hospital care. While there has been a decrease in in-hospital mortality over time, it remained high at 23.7% in 2019 in those with HRS.

Hepatic Hydrothorax: A Narrative Review

Hepatic hydrothorax (HH) represents a distinct clinical entity within the broader classification of pleural effusion that is associated with significant morbidity and mortality. The median survival of patients with cirrhosis who develop HH is 8-12 months. The diagnosis is typically made in the context of advanced liver disease and ascites, in the absence of underlying cardio-pulmonary pathology. A multi-disciplinary approach to management, involving respiratory physicians, hepatologists, and palliative care specialists is crucial to ensuring optimal patient-centered care. However, the majority of accepted therapeutic options are based on expert opinion rather than large, adequately powered randomized controlled trials. In this narrative review, we discuss the epidemiology, pathophysiology, clinical characteristics, and management of HH, highlighting the use of salt restriction and diuretic therapy, porto-systemic shunts, and liver transplantation. We include specific sections focusing on the role of pleural interventions and palliative care, respectively.

Integrating Specialist Palliative Care in the Liver Transplantation Evaluation Process: A Qualitative Analysis of Hepatologist and Palliative Care Provider Views

Patients undergoing evaluation for liver transplantation face heavy burdens of symptoms, health care use, and mortality. In other similarly ill populations, specialist palliative care has been shown to benefit patients, but specialist palliative care is infrequently used for liver transplantation patients. This project aims to describe the potential benefits of and barriers to specialist palliative care integration in the liver transplantation process. We performed qualitative analysis of transcripts from provider focus groups followed by a community engagement studio of patients and caregivers. Focus groups consisted of 14 palliative care specialists and 10 hepatologists from 11 institutions across the United States and Canada. The community engagement studio comprised patients and caregivers of patients either currently on the liver transplantation waiting list or recently after transplant. The focus groups identified 19 elements of specialist palliative care that could benefit this patient population, including exploring patients' illness understanding and expectations; assessing physical symptoms comprehensively; discussing patient values; and providing caregiver support, a safe space to discuss noncurative options, and anticipatory guidance about likely next steps. Identified barriers included role boundaries, differences in clinical cultures, limitations of time and staff, competing goals and priorities, misconceptions about palliative care, limited resources, changes in transplant status, and patient complexity. Community studio participants identified many of the same opportunities and barriers. This study found that hepatologists, palliative care specialists, patients, and caregivers identified areas of care for liver transplantation patients that specialist palliative care can improve and address.

Palliative Care for Patients with End-Stage Liver Disease on the Liver Transplant Waiting List: An International Systematic Review

People with end-stage liver disease on the liver transplant waiting list have high symptom burden, which can successfully be addressed by specialist palliative care. Potential tensions with the perceived curative nature of liver transplant make delivering specialist palliative care challenging. This systematic review seeks to establish what is known on the impact of specialist palliative care for patients on liver transplant waiting lists, healthcare professionals' perspectives of providing specialist palliative care for this population, and uptake of advance care planning (ACP). Medline, Embase, and CINAHL were searched to May 5, 2020. Qualitative and quantitative findings were grouped together according to main relevant themes. Eight studies of mixed quality and mainly quantitative, were identified. Findings suggest early palliative care intervention improve patients' symptoms and prompt ACP conversations, but patients on the waiting list receive limited palliative care input. Liver physicians' lack of clarity on referral criteria and liver transplant patients' concerns of being abandoned, were reasons for reluctance to refer to specialist palliative care. They felt referral to specialist palliative care is appropriate only for patients receiving hospice or end of life care. Uptake and understanding of ACP and goals of care designation by patients is poor. This review found evidence of benefit of specialist palliative care for patients on liver transplant waiting lists, but found in a limited understanding of their role. Evidence is limited to studies from North America. Future research is needed to understand better how palliative care could be provided into this clinical environment.

Developing Priorities for Palliative Care Research in Advanced Liver Disease: A Multidisciplinary Approach

Individuals with advanced liver disease (AdvLD), such as decompensated cirrhosis (DC) and hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC), have significant palliative needs. However, little research is available to guide health care providers on how to improve key domains related to palliative care (PC). We sought to identify priority areas for future research in PC by performing a comprehensive literature review and conducting iterative expert panel discussions. We conducted a literature review using search terms related to AdvLD and key PC domains. Individual reviews of these domains were performed, followed by iterative discussions by a panel consisting of experts from multiple disciplines, including hepatology, specialty PC, and nursing. Based on these discussions, priority areas for research were identified. We identified critical gaps in the available research related to PC and AdvLD. We developed and shared five key priority questions incorporating domains related to PC. Conclusion: Future research endeavors focused on improving PC in AdvLD should consider addressing the five key priorities areas identified from literature reviews and expert panel discussions.

What do we know about patients' perspectives and expectations relating to palliative and end-of-life care in advanced liver disease? A systematic review of qualitative literature using ENTREQ guidelines

BACKGROUND

Liver disease, a major cause of death worldwide, affects younger people compared with other major causes of death. Palliative and end-of-life care for these patients are often overlooked. Guidelines are emerging on what good end-of-life care in liver disease should look like, but there is a dearth of research into patients' perspectives even though they are most affected by these guidelines.

AIM

To explore current knowledge and understanding of patients' lived experiences, perspectives and expectations in relation to palliative and end-of-life care in advanced liver disease.

DESIGN

Systematic review with thematic synthesis complying to the enhancing transparency in reporting the synthesis of qualitative research (ENTREQ) statement.

SETTING AND PARTICIPANTS

Database searches (Ovid Medline, 1946-2021 and Web of Science, 1970-2021) to identify qualitative studies exploring patients' perspectives of palliative and end-of-life care in advanced liver disease.

FINDINGS

Only eight articles met all criteria. Themes demonstrated repeated hospital admissions towards the end of life, lack of coordinated care in community and barriers in discussion about palliative care in end-stage liver disease due to lack of confidence among professionals and a negative view about palliative care among patients and carers. Emotional, financial and disability-related needs of patients and their carers are often neglected.

CONCLUSION

There is a dearth of studies exploring patients' perspectives about care in advanced liver disease relating to palliative and end-of-life care. Lack of coordinated community support and honest conversations around palliative care leads to reduced quality of life. More primary research from diverse population is needed to improve palliative care and end-of-life care in end-stage liver disease.

Deficits in Advance Care Planning for Patients With Decompensated Cirrhosis at Liver Transplant Centers

IMPORTANCE

The burden of end-of-life care for patients with cirrhosis is increasing in the US, and most of these patients, many of whom are not candidates for liver transplant, die in institutions receiving aggressive care. Advance care planning (ACP) has been associated with improved end-of-life outcomes for patients with other chronic illnesses, but it has not been well-characterized in patients with decompensated cirrhosis.

OBJECTIVE

To describe the experience of ACP in patients with decompensated cirrhosis at liver transplant centers.

DESIGN, SETTING, AND PARTICIPANTS

For this multicenter qualitative study, face-to-face semistructured interviews were conducted between July 1, 2017, and May 30, 2018, with clinicians and patients with decompensated cirrhosis at 3 high-volume transplant centers in California. Patient participants were adults and had a diagnosis of cirrhosis, at least 1 portal hypertension-related complication, and current or previous Model for End-Stage Liver Disease with sodium score of 15 or higher. Clinician participants were health care professionals who provided care during the illness trajectory.

MAIN OUTCOMES AND MEASURES

Experiences with ACP reported by patients and clinicians. Participants were asked about the context, behaviors, thoughts, and decisions concerning elements of ACP, such as prognosis, health care preferences, values and goals, surrogate decision-making, and documentation.

RESULTS

The study included 42 patients (mean [SD] age, 58.2 [11.2] years; 28 men [67%]) and 46 clinicians (13 hepatologists [28%], 11 transplant coordinators [24%], 9 hepatobiliary surgeons [20%], 6 social workers [13%], 5 hepatology nurse practitioners [11%], and 2 critical care physicians [4%]). Five themes that represent the experiences of ACP were identified: (1) most patient consideration of values, goals, and preferences occurred outside outpatient visits; (2) optimistic attitudes from transplant teams hindered the discussions about dying; (3) clinicians primarily discussed death as a strategy for encouraging behavioral change; (4) transplant teams avoided discussing nonaggressive treatment options with patients; and (5) surrogate decision makers were unprepared for end-of-life decision-making.

CONCLUSIONS AND RELEVANCE

This study found that, despite a guarded prognosis, patients with decompensated cirrhosis had inadequate ACP throughout the trajectory of illness until the end of life. This finding may explain excessively aggressive life-sustaining treatment that patients receive at the end of life.

Creating Effective Models for Delivering Palliative Care in Advanced Liver Disease

Purpose of Review

The current healthcare system is not fully equipped to provide comprehensive support for patients with advanced liver disease (ALD) and their caregivers resulting in concomitant suffering and reduced quality of life (QoL). Integration of palliative care (PC) within routine care has demonstrated benefits in improving symptoms and QoL and reducing healthcare utilization for other serious illnesses but has been underutilized or delayed for ALD care. The purpose of this article is to outline the domains and benefits of PC and discuss the misconceptions and barriers for PC integration, and healthcare delivery models supporting PC integration within ALD care.

Recent Findings

PC has eight key domains related to physical and mental health, goals for future care, and care of the caregivers. PC offers benefits to improve health outcomes and patient satisfaction and reduce healthcare utilization. To date there have been successful models of PC that are primarily hospital- or community-based; successful models have been PC specialist- or primary/generalist-led.

Summary

Concurrent PC within oncology has formed the basis for most evidence-based guidelines. PC integration within ALD care is still in its infancy. While amassing evidence in ALD, hepatology organizations can promote consensus-based integrated PC models that can guide research and practice efforts to increase supportive care for these patients in need and their family caregivers.

AGA Clinical Practice Update on Palliative Care Management in Cirrhosis: Expert Review

Care with palliative care principles (aka Palliative Care, PC) is an approach to care that focuses on improving the quality of life of patients and their caregivers who are facing life-limiting illness. It encompasses the assessment and management of symptoms and changes in functional status, the provision of advance care planning and goals of care discussions, prognostication and caregiver support. PC is applicable across the spectrum of cirrhosis regardless of transplant eligibility. Although a common misconception, PC is not synonymous with hospice care. Unfortunately, despite a high symptom burden and challenges with predicting disease course and mounting evidence to support the benefits of PC in patients with cirrhosis, comprehensive PC and referral to hospice are carried out infrequently and very late in the course of disease. In order to meet the needs of our increasingly prevalent cirrhosis population, it is important that all clinicians who care for these patients are able to work together to deliver PC as a standard of care. To date there are limited guidelines/guidance statements to direct clinicians in the area of PC and cirrhosis. Herein we present an evidence-based review of ten Best Practice Advice statements that address key issues pertaining to PC in patients with cirrhosis.

Palliative care in liver disease: what does good look like?

The mortality rate from chronic liver disease in the UK is rising rapidly, and patients with advanced disease have a symptom burden comparable to or higher than that experienced in other life-limiting illnesses. While evidence is limited, there is growing recognition that care of patients with advanced disease needs to improve. Many factors limit widespread provision of good palliative care to these patients, including the unpredictable trajectory of chronic liver disease, the misconception that palliative care and end-of-life care are synonymous, lack of confidence in prescribing and lack of time and resources. Healthcare professionals managing these patients need to develop the skills to ensure effective delivery of core palliative care, with referral to specialist palliative care services reserved for those with complex needs. Core palliative care is best delivered by the hepatology team in parallel with active disease management. This includes ensuring that discussions about disease trajectory and advance care planning occur alongside active management of disease complications. Liver disease is strongly associated with significant social, psychological and financial hardships for patients and their carers; strategies that involve the wider multidisciplinary team at an early stage in the disease trajectory help ensure proactive management of such issues. This review summarises the evidence supporting palliative care for patients with advanced chronic liver disease, presents examples of current best practice and provides pragmatic suggestions for how palliative and disease-modifying care can be run in parallel, such that patients do not miss opportunities for interventions that improve their quality of life.