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Background Patients with known liver cirrhosis, irrespective of the etiology, have poor outcomes when put on invasive mechanical ventilation in an intensive care unit (ICU) setting. The clinical situation becomes even more complicated when such patients are managed in a non-transplant center. Various factors are associated with poor outcomes, and hence, various scoring systems are available to help determine the prognosis in patients with liver cirrhosis. These scoring systems are broadly classified into two categories, namely, ICU-specific scoring systems and liver disease-specific scoring systems. There is a dearth of data from Pakistan regarding which score better determines the prognosis of patients with liver cirrhosis admitted to the ICU. In this study, we aimed to determine the outcome of cirrhotic patients requiring invasive mechanical ventilation in a non-transplant tertiary care hospital in Pakistan using ICU-specific and liver disease-specific scoring systems. Methodology A retrospective study design was applied to a record of 88 cirrhotic patients admitted to the medical ICU of a tertiary care teaching hospital in Karachi, Pakistan, from January 2016 to November 2016. Patients with acute hepatitis were excluded. Data on patients' characteristics, the reason for intubation, hepatic encephalopathy, the need for vasopressor support, and the duration of ICU and hospital stay were collected. Moreover, the first-day Acute Physiology and Chronic Health Evaluation (APACHE) II, Sequential Organ Failure Assessment (SOFA), Child-Turcotte-Pugh (CTP), and Model for End-Stage Liver Disease (MELD) scores were calculated, with mortality being the primary outcome measure. Results The most common etiology was hepatitis C (52.3%, 46/88). The most common reason for intubation was airway protection (57.9%, 51/88). Overall mortality was 71.6% (63/88). On univariate analysis, CTP score >10, MELD score >18, hepatic encephalopathy, bilirubin, prothrombin time, presence of tense ascites, and APACHE II were significantly associated with mortality. On multivariate analysis, CTP score >10 (odd ratio = 21; 95% confidence interval (CI): 4-104; p < 0.001) was an independent predictor of mortality. Area under curve was 0.89 (95% CI = 0.82-0.96) for CTP, 0.86 (95% CI = 0.77-0.95) for MELD, 0.81 (95% CI = 0.69-0.92) for APACHE II, and 0.81 (95% CI = 0.71-0.91) for SOFA in predicting mortality. Conclusions CTP and MELD scores are better predictors of short-term mortality in patients with liver cirrhosis requiring invasive mechanical ventilation compared to APACHE II and SOFA scores. CTP score >10 was an independent predictor of mortality.
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INTRODUCTION: Variceal bleeding is a serious complication in patients with cirrhosis. Among the criteria that were proposed in Baveno conferences, the Adjusted Blood Requirement Index (ABRI) has not been validated prospectively in clinical practice. We therefore aim to evaluate the measurement of ABRI as a marker of failure to control bleeding and to evaluate the consistency of ABRI in relation to other criteria of failure to control variceal bleeding. PATIENTS AND METHODS: All patients with variceal bleeding who presented to Aga Khan University Hospital from January 2010 to December 2012 who were administered transfusion of packed red blood cells were included after obtaining informed consent. All patients were managed as per the standard protocol with intravenous terlipressin along with band ligation and injection of cyanoacrylate in cases of esophageal and fundal varices, respectively. Hemoglobin and hematocrit were measured every 6 h for 48 h and then every 12 h until 5 days of index bleed in each patient. Packed cells were transfused if hemoglobin decreased below 8 g/dl. The number of blood units transfused, change in hemoglobin values, and ABRI were calculated after each unit of blood transfusion till 120 h. In patients in whom bleed could not be controlled, an ABRI value of 0.75 or more was compared with other Baveno IV-based parameters that define failure to control variceal bleeding. RESULTS: During the study period, 137 eligible patients with variceal bleed were admitted. The mean age of the patients was 52±12 years. The majority of patients (50.4%) were in Child-Pugh class B, followed by 38% in Child-Pugh class C. According to the Baveno IV criteria, overall failure to control acute variceal bleeding occurred in 52 (37.9%) patients. Excluding ABRI, failure to control bleeding was found in 22/137 (16%) patients, whereas ABRI-based criteria showed that in 34/137 (24.8%) patients, bleeding could not be controlled. There were only four (2.9%) patients with variceal bleeding in whom ABRI and other additional Baveno IV-based criteria for failure to control bleeding were present. When ABRI was compared with other criteria for failure to control bleeding, it showed a sensitivity and specificity of 19 and 25%, respectively. CONCLUSION: This study showed that ABRI is not a useful additional tool to define failure to control bleeding after variceal hemorrhage in cirrhotic patients.
