Acute-on-chronic liver failure in Egypt: an underestimated complication of liver cirrhosis.

Background: Acute-on-chronic liver failure (ACLF) is a severe liver cirrhosis complication with high mortality rates. Despite that chronic liver diseases are prevalent in Egypt, there is no available data about patients with ACLF. We aimed to evaluate the pattern of ACLF in Egypt.

Methods: This prospective cohort study included all patients with ACLF, according to the American Association for the Study of Liver Diseases and the European Association for the Study of the Liver, admitted to Al-Rajhi liver Hospital, Egypt, between November 2018 and October 2019. We recorded data at admission, days 3, 7, 14 and 28, and calculated ACLF grades and Chronic Liver Failure Consortium scores until discharge or death. Kaplan-Meier survival analysis was used for survival analysis.

Results: We analyzed 52 patients with ACLF. Liver cirrhosis was secondary to hepatitis C virus in 46 patients (88.9%), and hepatitis B virus in 4 (7.4%). The main ACLF precipitating factors were infection in 38 (73.1%) and variceal bleeding in 9 (17.3%). The most common infections were spontaneous bacterial peritonitis (44.7%) and chest infection (31.6%). The 28 and 90-day mortality rates were 86.5 and 96.2%. None of the patients who survived >28 days had ACLF 3 at admission or day 7. Among those who died <28 days, ACLF 3 was reported in 7 at admission and 19 on day 7. Living donor liver transplantation was not offered in any case.

Conclusion: In this study, the 28-day mortality rate was higher than in the literature. Egypt urgently needs to develop specific protocols for the proper management of ACLF.