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Ann Hepatol 2022 May 14:100723. Epub 2022 May 14.

Gastroenterology, Liver Unit, Puerta de Hierro Biomedical Research Institute (IDIPHISA), Hospital Universitario Puerta de Hierro-Majadahonda, Madrid, Spain; Centro de Investigación Biomédica en Red en el Área temática de Enfermedades Hepáticas (CIBERehd), Instituto de Salud Carlos III, Madrid, Spain. Electronic address:

Introduction: Sarcopenia is one of the most common complications of cirrhosis, associated with an increased risk of morbidity and mortality. It is therefore necessary to perform a proper nutritional evaluation in these patients. Although CT scans are the gold standard for diagnosing sarcopenia, they are not widely used in clinical practice. Read More

Ann Hepatol 2022 May 13:100720. Epub 2022 May 13.

Hubei Key Laboratory of Tumor Microenvironment and Immunotherapy, China Three Gorges University. Electronic address:

Golgi protein 73 (also known as GP73 or GOLPH2) is a transmembrane glycoprotein present in the Golgi apparatus. In diseased states, GP73 is expressed by hepatocytes rather than by bile duct epithelial cells. Many studies have reported that serum GP73 (sGP73) is a marker for hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). Read More

Ann Hepatol 2022 May 12:100722. Epub 2022 May 12.

Department of Hematology Oncology, Beilun Branch of the First Affiliated Hospital of Medical College of Zhejiang University, Ningbo, Zhejiang, China. Electronic address:

Background: Circular RNAs (circRNAs) are identified to show important regulatory functions in cancer biology. We attempted to analyze the role of circ_0000291 in hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) progression and its related mechanism.

Methods: The circular characteristic of circ_0000291 was tested using exonuclease RNase R. Read More

Ann Hepatol 2022 May 9:100708. Epub 2022 May 9.

Metabolic Unit, Instituto Nacional de Ciencias Médicas y Nutrición "Salvador Zubirán" ["Salvador Zubirán" National Institute of Medical Sciences and Nutrition], Mexico City, Mexico. Electronic address:

Cirrhosis is characterized by a prolonged asymptomatic period in which the inflammation persists, increasing as the disease progresses. Proinflammatory cytokines and pro-oxidant molecules are key in the development of organ dysfunction. Cirrhosis progression and worsening of portal hypertension bring about bacterial translocation and systemic dissemination via portal circulation of bacterial products, and molecular patterns associated with damage, which exacerbate the systemic Inflammation. Read More

Ann Hepatol 2022 Apr 30:100721. Epub 2022 Apr 30.

College of Nursing, Jeonbuk National University, Republic of Korea. Electronic address:

Background: Recent studies have proposed two distinctive types of obesity, metabolically healthy obesity (MHO) and metabolically unhealthy obesity (MUHO), based on various physiological factors. This study sought to explore the relationship between the metabolic obesity types and the incidence of liver cirrhosis (LC) in a large nationally-representative population.

Methods: Data on 27,629 adults with MHO or MUHO, were analyzed from the Korea National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (KNANES) obtained from 2015 through 2019. Read More

Ann Hepatol 2022 Apr 29:100713. Epub 2022 Apr 29.

Department of Infectious Diseases, First Affiliated Hospital, Soochow University, Suzhou, 215006, Jiangsu Province, China. Electronic address:

Introduction And Objectives: Infection is a common complication of liver failure. Serum inflammatory markers used to diagnose infection have sufficient diagnostic sensitivity but low specificity. This study aimed to improve the early diagnosis of infections in liver failure patients by developing a diagnostic model and evaluating its predictive ability. Read More

Ann Hepatol 2022 Apr 29:100712. Epub 2022 Apr 29.

Department of Nuclear Medicine, Yantai Yuhuangding Hospital, Yantai 264000, China. Electronic address:

Introduction And Objectives: Circular RNA (circRNA) has been confirmed to be an important regulator for the progression of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). However, the role and regulatory mechanism of circ_0005397 in HCC are not completely clear.

Patients Or Materials And Methods: Fifty HCC patients were included in this study. Read More

Ann Hepatol 2022 Apr 27:100709. Epub 2022 Apr 27.

Molecular and Cellular Exercise Physiology Laboratory, Department of Movement Sciences and Health, Usha Kundu, MD College of Health, University of West Florida, Pensacola, FL 32514, USA. Electronic address:

Introduction And Aim: Non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) is one of the most common diseases in the United States. Metabolic distress (obese diabetes) is the main causative element of NAFLD. While there is no cure for NAFLD, endurance exercise (EEx) has emerged as a therapeutic strategy against NAFLD. Read More

Ann Hepatol 2022 Apr 24:100707. Epub 2022 Apr 24.

Obesity and metabolic syndrome study group, Hospital das Clínicas de São Paulo, HCFMUSP, Faculdade de Medicina, Universidade de São Paulo, Brazil.

Introduction: Although hyperferritinemia may reflect the inflammatory status of patients with non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD), approximately 33% of hyperferritinemia cases reflect real hepatic iron overload.

Aim: To evaluate a non-invasive method for assessing mild iron overload in patients with NAFLD using 3T magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) relaxometry, serum hepcidin, and the expression of ferritin subunits.

Methods: This cross-sectional study assessed patients with biopsy-proven NAFLD. Read More

Ann Hepatol 2022 Apr 20:100719. Epub 2022 Apr 20.

Department of Internal Medicine I, University Medical Center of the Johannes Gutenberg-University, Mainz, Germany; Cirrhosis Center Mainz (CCM), University Medical Center of the Johannes Gutenberg-University, Mainz, Germany. Electronic address:

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. Read More

Ann Hepatol 2022 Apr 20:100718. Epub 2022 Apr 20.

Department of Medicine, Division of Gastroenterology and Hepatology, University of California San Francisco, San Francisco, CA, United States. Electronic address:

Background: Loneliness, "a subjective feeling of being isolated", is a strong predictor of adverse health. We characterized loneliness in patients with end-stage liver disease (ESLD) awaiting liver transplantation (LT).

Methods: We surveyed loneliness in ambulatory ESLD adults awaiting LT at 7 U. Read More

Ann Hepatol 2022 Apr 18;27(4):100711. Epub 2022 Apr 18.

Department of Hepatology and Gastroenterology, Aarhus University Hospital, Palle Juul-Jensens Boulevard 99, Aarhus 8200, Denmark.

Introduction And Objectives: Spontaneous bacterial peritonitis (SBP) is a frequent complication to cirrhosis with an unclear long-term prognosis. We aimed to examine its effect on mortality in two independent patient cohorts.

Patients And Methods: We used Danish healthcare data on cirrhosis patients with a first-time paracentesis in 2000-2014 and data from three randomized controlled trials on satavaptan treatment of ascites conducted in 2006-2008. Read More

Ann Hepatol 2022 Apr 14;27(4):100710. Epub 2022 Apr 14.

Department of Oncology, The Affiliated Hospital of Southwest Medical University, Luzhou, 646000 Sichuan, China.

Both external radiotherapy and sorafenib are promising treatments for hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). Nevertheless, the combined treatment of external radiotherapy and sorafenib has not been widely applied clinically due to potentially adverse effects. This meta-analysis aimed to evaluate the clinical efficacy and safety of external radiotherapy combined with sorafenib in the treatment of HCC. Read More

Ann Hepatol 2022 Apr 12:100706. Epub 2022 Apr 12.

Liver unit, Department of Gastroenterology at Hospital Nacional Arzobispo Loayza, Lima, Peru.

Non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) produces high morbidity and mortality rates. Its worldwide prevalence is 25%, but evidence from Latin America (LA) is lacking. We aimed to estimate the prevalence of NAFLD in the adult population of LA. Read More

Ann Hepatol 2022 Apr 8;27(4):100705. Epub 2022 Apr 8.

Graduate School of Xi'an Medical University, Xi'an, China.

It is well known that the quality of life (QoL) of patients with chronic hepatitis C (HCV) is lower than that of the general population and that therapy with direct-acting antivirals (DAA) for HCV is safe and effective. However, data on the QoL of patients are scanty. The purpose of this study was to assess the effect of DAA drugs on patients' QoL. Read More

Ann Hepatol 2022 Apr 6;27(4):100704. Epub 2022 Apr 6.

Department of Virology, School of Medicine, Hamadan University of Medical Science, Hamadan, Iran. Electronic address:

Ann Hepatol 2022 Mar 26;27(4):100701. Epub 2022 Mar 26.

The First Hospital of Jiaxing, Affiliated Hospital of Jiaxing University, Department of Oncology. Electronic address:

Introduction And Objectives: Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) ranks third on the list of the leading cause for cancer death globally. The treatment of HCC patients is unsatisfactory. However, the traditional Chinese medicine Chebulae Fructus has potential efficacy in the treatment of HCC. Read More

Ann Hepatol 2022 Mar 23;27(4):100702. Epub 2022 Mar 23.

Institute of Digestive Health & Liver Diseases, Mercy Medical Center, Baltimore, MD; Department of Medicine, University of Maryland School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD. Electronic address:

Background &aims: Lower antibody (Ab) responses after SARS-CoV-2 vaccination have been reported in liver transplant (LT) recipients and those with chronic liver diseases (CLD). The role of a booster dose in those with poor responses to initial vaccination is not well defined.

Methods: In this prospective study, we determined antibody (Ab) response to spike protein after a booster dose in LT recipients and those with chronic liver diseases (CLD) with and without cirrhosis after they had a poor response to an initial standard regimen. Read More

Ann Hepatol 2022 May-Jun;27(3):100703. Epub 2022 Mar 23.

Divisions of Gastroenterology and Hepatology and Transplant Medicine, Department of Medicine, Cumming School of Medicine, O'Brien Institute of Public Health, University of Calgary, 6th Floor, Teaching Research and Wellness Building, 3280 Hospital Drive NW, Calgary AB T2N 4N1 Canada. Electronic address:

Ann Hepatol 2022 Mar 23;27(4):100700. Epub 2022 Mar 23.

Department of Infectious Diseases, the Second Xiangya Hospital of Central South University, Changsha, Hunan 410011, P.R. China. Electronic address:

Objective: This study aimed to determine the roles of microRNA (miR)-122 in the activation of hepatic stellate cells (HSCs) and liver cirrhosis.

Methods: Rat primary HSCs were incubated with transforming growth factor-beta (TGF-β), during which miR-122 and EphB2 expression was measured. miR-122 mimic and/or pcDNA3. Read More

Ann Hepatol 2022 Mar 14;27(4):100697. Epub 2022 Mar 14.

Diabetes Research Center, Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, and Zhejiang Key Laboratory of Pathophysiology, School of Medicine, Ningbo University, Ningbo 315211, China. Electronic address:

Introduction And Objectives: Type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) increases the occurrence and mortality of liver cancer. Insulin growth factor (IGF) plays a crucial role in the development of diabetes and liver cancer, and specifically, IGF-1 may be involved in the development of liver cancer with preexisting T2DM. Autophagy contributes to cancer cell survival and apoptosis. Read More

Ann Hepatol 2022 Mar 9;27(4):100699. Epub 2022 Mar 9.

Laboratory of Clinical Pharmacy, Tohoku University Graduate School of Pharmaceutical Sciences, 1-1 Seiryo-machi, Aoba-ku, Sendai, Miyagi 980-8574, Japan; Department of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Tohoku University Hospital, 1-1, Seiryo-machi, Aoba-ku, Sendai, Miyagi 980-8574, Japan.

Introduction And Objectives: Clinical guidelines recommend specific drugs for type 2 diabetes (T2D), hypertension, and dyslipidemia in patients with non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) and/or non-alcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH). We aimed to investigate the differences in prescription trends of antidiabetic, antihypertensive, and lipid-lowering drugs among adult patients according to the presence of comorbid NAFLD and/or NASH.

Methods: We conducted a cross-sectional analysis using a large claims database from January 2013 to December 2020. Read More

Ann Hepatol 2022 May-Jun;27(3):100698. Epub 2022 Mar 6.

Instituto de Nutrigenética y Nutrigenómica Traslacional, Departamento de Biología Molecular y Genómica, Centro Universitario de Ciencias de la Salud, Universidad de Guadalajara, Guadalajara, México, Sierra Mojada 950, Guadalajara, Jalisco, Mexico.. Electronic address:

Ann Hepatol 2022 May-Jun;27(3):100695. Epub 2022 Mar 5.

Department of Hepatobiliary Surgery, The First Affiliated Hospital of Guangxi Medical University, Nanning 530021, Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region, People's Republic of China. Electronic address:

Introduction And Objectives: Whether there is gender disparity in the recurrence of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) has been not fully addressed. This study aimed to investigate the impact of gender on HCC recurrence following curative hepatectomy.

Patients And Methods: This retrospective cohort study included 1087 patients with HCC (917 males, 170 females) who underwent curative hepatectomy. Read More

Ann Hepatol 2022 May-Jun;27(3):100696. Epub 2022 Mar 5.

Department of Gastroenterology, Graduate School of Medicine, Chiba University, 1-8-1 Inohana, Chuo-ku, Chiba-shi, Chiba 260-8677, Japan. Electronic address:

Introduction And Objectives: Acute cholangitis, which is characterized by biliary infection and acute liver injury, may impact cirrhosis prognosis. However, the prognosis itself remains unclear.

Materials And Methods: This multicenter retrospective cohort study compared the mortality and liver function change between patients with and without cirrhosis who underwent endoscopic treatment for acute cholangitis caused by choledocholithiasis between January 2004 and December 2019. Read More

Ann Hepatol 2022 May-Jun;27(3):100690. Epub 2022 Feb 20.

Department of Internal Medicine, Catholic Kwandong University College of Medicine, International St. Mary's Hospital, Incheon Metropolitan city, Republic of Korea; Division of Hepatology, Catholic Kwandong University College of Medicine, International St. Mary's Hospital, Incheon Metropolitan city, Republic of Korea.

Introduction And Objectives: Recently, interest in the relationship between weekend catch-up sleep (WCUS) and chronic diseases is increasing. We aimed to study the correlation between sleep duration and non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD), an emerging metabolic disease.

Materials And Methods: Data on sleep duration from the Korea National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey was recorded. Read More

Ann Hepatol 2022 May-Jun;27(3):100688. Epub 2022 Feb 20.

Department of Hepatobiliary Surgery, Tianjin First Central Hospital, Tianjin, China.

Introduction And Objectives: Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is one of the most common and fatal tumors in the world, ranking third in cancer-related mortality. Chronic HBV infection is one of the major risk factors for hepatocellular carcinoma in China, Korea, and Sub-Saharan Africa. The HBx protein encoded by the X gene of HBV is a broadly regulated protein involved in transcriptional activation, epigenetics, apoptosis, DNA repair, and other regulatory processes. Read More

Ann Hepatol 2022 May-Jun;27(3):100689. Epub 2022 Feb 19.

Department of Gastroenterology, West China Hospital, Sichuan University, No. 37, Guo Xue Xiang, Wu Hou District, Chengdu 610041, China. Electronic address:

Introduction: The safety and efficacy have always been a concern, when patients with decompensated liver cirrhosis (DLC) receive endoscopic treatments.

Methods: To evaluate the safety and efficacy of common endoscopic treatments including endoscopic resection (ER) and endoscopic retrograde cholangiopancreatography (ERCP) applying to patients with DLC, we performed a retrospective study finally including 81 patients receiving ER (43 endoscopic mucosal resection (EMR) and 38 endoscopic submucosal dissection (ESD)) and 131 patients treated by ERCP.

Results: There were no significant differences in the rate of degeneration and invariability of Child-Pugh (CP) class and the overall rate of adverse events between two groups (93. Read More

Ann Hepatol 2022 May-Jun;27(3):100685. Epub 2022 Feb 19.

Karsh Division of Gastroenterology and Hepatology, Cedars-Sinai Medical Center, Los Angeles, CA, USA; Comprehensive Transplant Center, Cedars-Sinai Medical Center, Los Angeles, CA, USA. Electronic address:

Background And Objectives: The COVID-19 pandemic imperiled the global health system. We aimed to determine the impact of COVID-19 on the care continuum of HCV-infected patients.

Material And Methods: Two hundred and fifty-six patients who were prescribed a course of DAA therapy at three tertiary medical centers in the US and China between January 1, 2019 to June 30, 2020 were included. Read More

Ann Hepatol 2022 May-Jun;27(3):100687. Epub 2022 Feb 19.

Liver Unit, Vall d'Hebron Hospital Universitari, Vall d'Hebron Institut of Research (VHIR), Vall d'Hebron Barcelona Hospital Campus, Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona, Barcelona, Spain; Centro de Investigación Biomédica en Red de Enfermedades Hepáticas y Digestivas (CIBERehd), Instituto de Salud Carlos III, Madrid, Spain.

Introduction And Objectives: Spontaneous portosystemic shunts (SPSS) are a common cause of recurrent hepatic encephalopathy (HE). Shunt occlusion is an effective and safe procedure when performed in patients with cirrhosis and preserved liver function. We aimed to describe our experience with SPSS embolization after liver transplantation (LT). Read More