ABSTRACT
OBJECTIVE: To explore the correlation between the levels of liver fibrosis and liver fibrosis biochemical parameters of advanced schistosomiasis patients. METHODS: A total of 48 advanced schistosomiasis patients were investigated and they were examined by the liver biopsy and B ultrasound imaging. At the same time, the liver fibrosis biochemical parameters, including glutamine transpeptidase (GGT), alkaline phosphatase (AKP), procollagen III (PC-III), collagen type IV (IV-C), hyaluronic acid (HA) and laminin (LN), were detected. The liver fibrosis levels were classified by the liver biopsy and B ultrasound imaging, respectively, and the correlation between the levels of liver fibrosis and liver fibrosis biochemical parameters were analyzed statistically. RESULTS: There was no correlation between the liver fibrosis levels classified by the liver biopsy and all the liver fibrosis biochemical parameters; there was a weak correlation between the liver fibrosis levels classified by the B ultrasound imaging and GGT, AKP, LN and PC-III, respectively; there was a significant correlation between the liver fibrosis levels classified by the B ultrasound imaging and HA and IV-C, respectively. CONCLUSIONS: B ultrasound examination is a better, noninvasive fibrosis inspection method. Liver fibrosis biochemical parameters combined with the B ultrasound examination may better reflect the overall condition of liver fibrosis.
Subject(s)
Liver Cirrhosis/pathology , Schistosomiasis/complications , Aged , Aged, 80 and over , Alkaline Phosphatase/blood , Biopsy , Collagen Type IV/blood , Female , Humans , Hyaluronic Acid/blood , Liver/pathology , Liver Cirrhosis/classification , Liver Cirrhosis/complications , Liver Cirrhosis/diagnostic imaging , Male , Middle Aged , UltrasonographyABSTRACT
BACKGROUND: Schistosoma japonicum causes marked liver fibrosis, while lethal syndromes present in advanced schistosomiasis patients. Its management depends on the degree of fibrosis present. PATIENTS AND METHODS: Fifty-two patients were recruited to assess the diagnostic value of bio-markers in patients with advanced schistosomiasis japonica. Fibrosis was assessed in liver biopsies using METAVIR system. The correlation between conventional parameters and significant fibrosis (F2-F4) was assessed using univariate analysis and logistic regression. The method of area under receiver operating characteristic curves (AUROCs) was used as a measurement of diagnostic efficacy. RESULTS: White blood cell counts, platelet counts and albumin (all P<0.05) were significantly lower, while prothrombin time, international normalized ratio (INR), hyaluronic acid (HA), IV collagen and ultrasound fibrosis scores (all P<0.01) were significantly elevated in F2-F4 patients compared with F0-F1 patients. HA and INR were identified as independent predictors by multivariate analysis (P=0.023 and P=0.013, respectively). Of the routine laboratory tests for the diagnosis of significant fibrosis, HA gave the best AUROC of 0.875 (95% confidence interval (CI): 0.701-0.997). We constructed a new simple index (INR×HA/100) to discriminate between F2-F4 patients and F0-F1 patients. It showed the highest AUROC of 0.921 (95% CI: 0.828-1.000), and had better diagnostic values than APRI and FIB-4. CONCLUSION: HA and INR were reliable markers for differentiating significant liver fibrosis in patients with advanced schistosomiasis japonica. And the new simple index can easily predict significant liver fibrosis with a high degree of accuracy.
