Liver transplantation for hepatitis B and C virus-related cirrhosis: mid-term results

Prevalence, predictive factors, and survival outcome of new-onset diabetes after liver transplantation: A population-based cohort study

The aim of the present nationwide population-based cohort study was to explore the prevalence, risk factors, and survival outcome of new-onset diabetes (NOD) in recipients after liver transplantation.The National Health Insurance Research Database of Taiwan was searched for ICD-9-codes, 2248 patients who had received liver transplant without pretransplant diabetes from July 1, 1998 to December 31, 2012 were included in the study. The preoperative risks factors were considered and analyzed using logistic regression analysis, following adjustments for age and sex. All patients were followed up until the end of the study or death.The final dataset included 189 patients with NOD and 2059 without diabetes after liver transplantation. The prevalence of NOD was 8.4% and in 64% NOD appeared in the first year after liver transplantation. Preoperative clinical events, alcoholic liver cirrhosis, and hepatic encephalopathy were the most important risk factors for NOD after liver transplantation. The mortality rate was lower in NOD recipients than in non-NOD recipients within 5 years.In this study, we provide evidence that NOD recipients had better 5-year survival outcomes in this clinical population. The most important identifiable predictive factors for NOD after liver transplantation were alcoholic hepatitis, ascites, hepatic coma, and esophageal varices.

Response to treatment in Brazilian patients with chronic hepatitis C is associated with a single-nucleotide polymorphism near the interleukin-28B gene

A single-nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) upstream of interleukin (IL)28B was recently identified as an important predictor of the outcome of chronic hepatitis C patients treated with pegylated interferon plus ribavirin (PEG-IFN/RBV). The aim of this study was to investigate the association between the IL28B gene polymorphism (rs12979860) and virological response in chronic hepatitis C patients. Brazilian patients (n = 263) who were infected with hepatitis C virus (HCV) genotype 1 and were receiving PEG-IFN/RBV were genotyped. Early virological response (EVR) (12 weeks), end-of-treatment response (EOTR) (48 weeks), sustained virological response (SVR) (72 weeks) and relapse were evaluated using conventional and quantitative polymerase chain reaction (PCR) assays. The frequency of the C allele in the population was 39%. Overall, 43% of patients experienced SVR. The IL28B CC genotype was significantly associated with higher treatment response rates and a lower relapse rate compared to the other genotypes [84% vs. 58% EVR, 92% vs. 63% EOTR, 76% vs. 38% SVR and 17% vs. 40% relapse rate in CC vs. other genotypes (CT and TT), respectively]. Thus, the IL28B genotype appears to be a strong predictor of SVR following PEG-IFN/RBV therapy in treatment-naïve Brazilian patients infected with HCV genotype 1. This study, together with similar research examining other SNPs, should help to define adequate protocols for the treatment of patients infected with HCV genotype 1, especially those with a poor prognosis.