Changes in Characteristics of Patients with Liver Cirrhosis Visiting a Tertiary Hospital over 15 Years: a Retrospective Multi-Center Study in Korea

Background@#Liver cirrhosis has become a heavy burden not only for patients, but also for our society. However, little is known about the recent changes in clinical outcomes and characteristics of patients with cirrhosis-related complications in Korea. Therefore, we aimed to evaluate changes in characteristics of patients with liver cirrhosis in Daegu-Gyeongbuk province in Korea over the past 15 years. @*Methods@#We retrospectively reviewed the medical records of 15,716 liver cirrhotic patients from 5 university hospitals in Daegu-Gyeongbuk province from 2000 to 2014. The Korean Standard Classification of Diseases-6 code associated with cirrhosis was investigated through medical records and classified according to the year of first visit. @*Results@#A total of 15,716 patients was diagnosed with cirrhosis. A number of patients newly diagnosed with cirrhosis has decreased each year. In 2000, patients were most likely to be diagnosed with hepatitis B virus (HBV) cirrhosis, followed by alcoholic cirrhosis. There was a significant decrease in HBV (P < 0.001), but alcohol, hepatitis C virus (HCV), and non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) showed a significant increase during the study period (alcohol, P = 0.036; HCV, P = 0.001; NAFLD, P = 0.001). At the time of initial diagnosis, the ratio of Child-Turcotte-Pugh (CTP) class A gradually increased from 23.1% to 32.9% (P < 0.001). The most common cause of liver-related hospitalization in 2000 was hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) (25.5%); in 2014, gastrointestinal bleeding with esophageal and gastric varices (21.4%) was the most common cause. Cases of hospitalization with liver-related complication represented 76.4% of all cases in 2000 but 70.9% in 2014. Incidence rate of HCC has recently increased. In addition, HCC-free survival was significantly lower in CTP class A than in classes B and C. Finally, there was significant difference in HCC occurrence according to causes (P < 0.001). HBV and HCV cirrhosis had lower HCC-free survival than alcoholic and NAFLD cirrhosis. @*Conclusion@#In recent years, the overall number of cirrhosis patients has decreased. This study confirmed the recent trend in decrease of cirrhosis, especially of cirrhosis due to HBV, and the increase of HCV, alcoholic and NAFLD cirrhosis. Targeted screening for at-risk patients will facilitate early detection of liver diseases allowing effective intervention and may have decreased the development of cirrhosis and its complications.

Histologic discrepancy between endoscopic forceps biopsy and endoscopic mucosal resection specimens of colorectal polyp in actual clinical practice

BACKGROUND/AIMS: We aimed to assess the rate of histologic discrepancy (HD) between endoscopic forceps biopsy (EFB) and totally resected specimens in colorectal polyp and analyze the risk factors of discordant group, especially under-diagnosis (UD) cases before complete removal of colorectal polyp. METHODS: From 2010 to 2015, a total of 290 polyps in 210 patients which had baseline pathology report before endoscopic resection (ER) were analyzed. UD cases were defined as those in which the diagnosis changed to a more advanced histologic feature after ER. RESULTS: A change in the final histology after ER was noted in 137 cases (47.2%), and after excluding 9 insignificant cases, 128 cases were further categorized into over-diagnosed and under-diagnosed group. UD occurred in 86 cases (29.7%) and change from benign to malignancy was noted in 26 cases (8.9%). On univariate analysis, a larger polyp size (>10 mm) was significantly associated with both HD (P 10 mm was the single most significant predictor of both HD (P 10 mm was the most important predictor of both HD and UD. We should be careful in making treatment strategy of colorectal polyp based on histologic report of EFB especially when the size of polyp is >10 mm.

Diffuse-Type Caroli Disease with Characteristic Central Dot Sign Complicated by Multiple Intrahepatic and Common Bile Duct Stones

Caroli disease (CD) is a rare congenital malformation of the liver characterized by non-obstructive, segmental, cystic dilatation of the intrahepatic bile ducts (IHDs). The clinical course is usually asymptomatic for the first 5–20 years, and symptoms may seldom occur throughout the patient’s life. Bile stagnation leads to recurrent episodes of cholangitis, stone formation, or liver abscesses, and biliary cirrhosis usually occurs years later. Here we report on a 42-year-old man diagnosed with diffuse-type CD with a characteristic central dot sign, who had multiple intrahepatic and common bile duct (CBD) stones. CBD stones were treated successfully with endoscopic retrograde cholangiopancreatography (ERCP).

Do Esophageal Squamous Cell Carcinoma Patients Have an Increased Risk of Coexisting Colorectal Neoplasms?

No abstract available.