Validation of the CLIF-C OF Score and CLIF-C ACLF Score to Predict Transplant-Free Survival in Patients with Liver Cirrhosis and Concomitant Need for Intensive Care Unit Treatment.

Both the Chronic Liver Failure Consortium (CLIF-C) organ failure score (OFs) and the CLIF-C acute-on-chronic-liver failure (ACLF) score (ACLFs) were developed for risk stratification and to predict mortality in patients with liver cirrhosis and ACLF. However, studies validating the predictive ability of both scores in patients with liver cirrhosis and concomitant need for intensive care unit (ICU) treatment are scarce. The aim of the present study is to validate the predictive ability of the CLIF-C OFs and CLIF-C ACLFs regarding the rationale of ongoing ICU treatment and to investigate their predictive ability regarding 28-days (short-), 90-days (medium-), and 365-days (long-term) mortality in patients with liver cirrhosis treated in an ICU.

Liver Frailty Index for Prediction of Short-Term Rehospitalization in Patients with Liver Cirrhosis.

Background: Stratifying patients with liver cirrhosis for risk of rehospitalization is challenging with established scoring systems for chronic liver disease. Frailty captures the physical characteristics of patients with cirrhosis. Its value for predicting short-term rehospitalizations in hospitalized patients remains to be defined.

Characteristics of bacterial infections and prevalence of multidrug-resistant bacteria in hospitalized patients with liver cirrhosis in Germany.

Introduction And Objectives: Bacterial infections are associated with a dismal prognosis in patients with liver cirrhosis. Data on their prevalence and the associated pathogen spectra in Germany are scarce. This study aimed to evaluate the impact of bacterial infections on mortality in hospitalized patients with liver cirrhosis and to analyze the prevalence of multidrug-resistant (MDR) bacteria in a German tertiary care center.

Validation of EncephalApp_Stroop as screening tool for the detection of minimal hepatic encephalopathy in German patients with liver cirrhosis.

Background: In contrast to overt hepatic encephalopathy (OHE), the diagnosis of minimal HE (MHE) is challenging in patients with cirrhosis requiring elaborate, specialized testing. The EncephalApp_Stroop is a smartphone-based application established as screening tool for the diagnosis of MHE but has not yet been validated in a German cohort and country specific cut-offs are currently missing.

Methods: 93 patients with cirrhosis were enroled into this study.

Evaluation of IL-6 for Stepwise Diagnosis of Minimal Hepatic Encephalopathy in Patients With Liver Cirrhosis.

Diagnosis of minimal hepatic encephalopathy (MHE) requires psychometric testing, which is time-consuming and often neglected in clinical practice. Elevated Interleukin-6 (IL-6) serum levels have been linked to MHE. The aim of this study was to investigate the usefulness of IL-6 as a biomarker in a stepwise diagnostic algorithm to detect MHE in patients with liver cirrhosis.

Elevated serum levels of methylglyoxal are associated with impaired liver function in patients with liver cirrhosis.

Methylglyoxal (MGO) is a highly reactive dicarbonyl species that forms advanced glycation end products (AGEs). The binding of these AGEs to their receptor (RAGE) causes and sustains severe inflammation. Systemic inflammation is postulated to be a major driver in the progression of liver cirrhosis.

Risk factors for poorer health literacy in patients with liver cirrhosis.

Background: Health literacy is a concept that refers to patients' ability to manage their disease and the health system's ability to guarantee access to services. There is evidence that health literacy impacts the health outcomes of patients with chronic diseases, but detailed information on this topic in patients with liver cirrhosis is scarce. It was the aim of this study to identify risk factors for poorer health literacy in patients with liver cirrhosis.

Impact of non-selective ß-blockers on hepatic encephalopathy in patients with liver cirrhosis.

Background: Non-selective β-blockers (NSBB) are frequently used for the treatment of portal hypertension and gastroesophageal varices in patients with liver cirrhosis; however prospective studies investigating the potential association between NSBB use and hepatic encephalopathy (HE) are still scarce. We investigated the potential association between NSBB use and the presence of covert HE (CHE) as well as the development of overt HE (OHE).

Methods: 224 patients with liver cirrhosis were included into this cohort study at two German centers and followed for a median of 364 days.

Validation of the Clinical Frailty Scale for the Prediction of Mortality in Patients With Liver Cirrhosis.

Introduction: Frailty is a common but often underestimated complication in patients with liver cirrhosis. The Clinical Frailty Scale (CFS) allows the assessment of frailty within a short period of time but has only been investigated in a Canadian cohort of outpatients. The aim of the current study was to evaluate the ability of the CFS to predict mortality in outpatients and nonelectively hospitalized German patients.

Association between diabetes mellitus and hepatic encephalopathy in patients with cirrhosis.

Background: Diabetes mellitus may lead to increased serum ammonia and systemic inflammation thereby promoting hepatic encephalopathy (HE).

Aim: To investigate the potential association between diabetes mellitus/glycaemic control and the presence of covert HE as well as the development of overt HE in a prospective setting.

Methods: A total of 240 patients with liver cirrhosis were included into this prospective cohort study and followed for a median of 17 months.

Lithium-induced gene expression alterations in two peripheral cell models of bipolar disorder.

The aim of our study was to investigate molecular mechanisms of lithium action by studying the gene expression profile of peripheral cell models generated from bipolar patients (BD) and healthy controls (HC). EBV-immortalised lymphoblastoid cells (LCLs) and fibroblast cells from BD and HC were incubated with either lithium chloride or plain medium for 3 weeks. We first conducted a microarray gene expression study.

A preliminary study on methylphenidate-regulated gene expression in lymphoblastoid cells of ADHD patients.

Objectives: Methylphenidate (MPH) is a commonly used stimulant medication for treating attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). Besides inhibiting monoamine reuptake there is evidence that MPH also influences gene expression directly.

Methods: We investigated the impact of MPH treatment on gene expression levels of lymphoblastoid cells derived from adult ADHD patients and healthy controls by hypothesis-free, genome-wide microarray analysis.