Impact of non-selective beta blockers on portal hypertension and hepatic elasticity in hepatitis C virus-related liver cirrhosis.

Impact of non-selective beta blockers on portal hypertension and hepatic elasticity in hepatitis C virus-related liver cirrhosis. Drug Discov Ther. 2019;13(2):108-113 Authors: Zaghloul SG, Wahab EA, Seleem WM, Hanafy AS, Gomaa AF, Lakouz K, Amin AI Abstract Portal hypertension and its complications are the leading causes of morbidity and mortality in patients with liver cirrhosis. Noninvasive assessment of liver stiffness had been an effective tool for assessment of fibrosis progression in chronic liver disease. It was intended to assess liver stiffness measurement (LSM), portal vein diameter (PVD), splenic bipolar diameter (SD), and the platelet count/spleen diameter (PC/SD) ratio in patients who test positive for the hepatitis C virus (HCV) and to study the impact of non-selective beta blockers (NSBB) on the grade of esophageal varices (EVs) and liver elasticity. Subjects were 80 patients with Child-Pugh grade A or B compensated cirrhosis who tested positive for HCV. All of the patients underwent a laboratory workup including AFP, HCV antibodies, HCV RNA, HBsAg, LSM according to real-time elastography, upper gastrointestinal endoscopy (UGIE) to detect and grade EVs, calculation of the PC/SD ratio, and measurement of the PVD and SD according to real-time abdominal ultrasonography. All patients were given the maximum tolerated dose of NSBB for three months, and UGIE, LSM, PC/SD, PVD, and SD were subsequently reassessed and reported. ...
Source: Drug Discoveries and Therapeutics - Category: Drugs & Pharmacology Tags: Drug Discov Ther Source Type: research