Different response to ursodeoxycholic acid (UDCA) in primary biliary cirrhosis according to severity of disease

To evaluate the effect of ursodeoxycholic acid (UDCA) treatment according to the severity of primary biliary cirrhosis, a long-term prospective open trial in 54 consecutive PBC patients, 19 with histological stage I–II, 24 stage III, and 11 stage IV was carried out. UDCA was administered at a dosage of 250 mg twice a day. Clinical and biochemical assessment (AST, ALT, alkaline phosphatase, GGT, bilirubin) were done initially and every six months. Serum hyaluronate (HY) and type III procollagen amino propeptide (PIIIP) were also evaluated, as they are considered markers of fibrosis and prognosis. All patients were followed-up for at least two years (24–36 months); results were analyzed at 24 months after treatment. The composite pruritus score failed to show significant changes during UDCA treatment, while intensity score demonstrated a significant reduction from the 6th month. Patients with histological stage I–II disease had a significant decrease of liver enzymes (AST, ALT, alkaline phosphatase, GGT) after six months and maintained the levels up to 24 months. The patients with histological stage III disease showed a significant decrease of AST, ALT, alkaline phosphatase (but not GGT) up to month 18; subsequently AST and ALT serum levels increased, reaching values comparable to baseline by 24 months. In patients with histological stage IV disease no significant change in liver enzymes was observed during the follow-up. HY and PIIIP serum levels failed to show significant changes during UDCA treatment in the three groups of patients. In conclusion, although well tolerated in all patients with PBC, UDCA seems to improve itching and liver enzymes only in the pre cirrhotic stage. A long-term remission of the disease is maintained only in the early histological stages.     

Treatment of primary biliary cirrhosis with ursodeoxycholic acid

This study was undertaken to evaluate the efficacy of ursodeoxycholic acid (UDCA) in the treatment of primary biliary cirrhosis (PBC). Three patients with PBC (stage II) have been treated with UDCA (Ursofalk and Falk Pharma, Freiburg, Germany)--of 10 mg/kg daily dosage in the course of three years. Patients with well-defined PBC underwent complete history, physical examination, liver chemistries, ultrasonography and liver biopsy. Liver chemistries were determined every three months. A control liver biopsy was performed to one of the patient, an year after the beginning of the treatment. UDCA was well tolerated and showed no side effects. The most obvious benefit of UDCA was its favourable effect on serum biochemistries. Its use was associated with the delayed progression of the disease.     

熊去氧胆酸治疗原发性胆汁性肝硬化的研究进展

原发性胆汁性肝硬化(primary bilary cirrhorb，PBC)是一种慢性肝内胆汁淤积性疾病，本病多累及中老年妇女，男女之比为1：9；原发性胆汁性肝硬化的主要临床表现为乏力、黄疸、皮肤瘙痒、门脉高压、骨质疏松和脂溶性维生素缺乏，可伴有反复性无症状性泌尿系感染及多种自身免疫性疾病：血清碱性磷酸酶(ALP)、γ谷氨酰转肽酶(γ-GT)升高、抗线粒体抗体(AMA)阳性是本病的重     

原发性胆汁性肝硬化停用熊去氧胆酸治疗的前瞻性研究

目的 评价原发性胆汁性肝硬化(PBC)患者停用熊去氧胆酸(UDCA)的反应.方法 27例经UDCA治疗后肝功能正常>6个月的PBC患者分为A、B两组,A组停用UDCA,B组维持UDCA 13～15 mg·kg-1·d-1治疗,两组患者在性别、年龄、病程等方面相匹配,观察12个月.结果 随访过程中A组1例退出,B组1例失访.A组12例,B组13例.A组2例出现病情进展,占17%,均为血清胆红素升高至正常值2倍以上,分别发生在第3个月和第12个月;B组患者未出现病情进展,两组差异无统计学意义.至观察结束时,A组92%疾病复发,B组为15%,差异有统计学意义(P<0.05). A组患者丙氨酸转氨酶(ALT)、天冬氨酸转氨酶(AST)、碱性磷酸酶(ALP)、γ-谷氨酰转肽酶(GGT)升高,差异有统计学意义(P<0.05).血清胆红素平均水平差异无统计学意义.B组上述指标均维持稳定.结论 对UDCA治疗后肝功能正常的PBC患者需要长期维持UDCA治疗.     

Optimum dose of ursodeoxycholic acid in primary biliary cirrhosis.

BACKGROUND: Ursodeoxycholic acid (UDCA) improves liver function tests and prolongs survival in primary biliary cirrhosis (PBC). The dose of 10- 15 mg/kg/day used in the large trials has largely been based on that used for gallstone dissolution. The only dose-response study of UDCA in PBC suggested that a dose of 8 mg/kg/day was the most efficacious. However, disease stage of the patients was not known, higher doses of UDCA were not tried and there was no 'washout period' between the different doses. The aim of this study was to determine the optimum dose of UDCA in early-stage PBC (stage 1 and 2). METHODS: Twenty-four biopsy-proven early-stage PBC patients (one male, 23 female) received five doses of UDCA (0, 300, 600, 900, 1200 mg/day) each for 8 weeks with 4-week washout periods between doses. Symptoms (pruritus, fatigue, diarrhoea) were assessed on a four-point scale (none, mild, moderate, severe). Liver function tests (LFTs) were performed using conventional methods, and serum bile acids were measured using gas liquid chromatography. RESULTS: The dose of 900 mg/day produced the greatest enrichment of UDCA in serum bile acids; although there was no difference in the enrichment of UDCA between the different doses. There was a trend towards normalization of the abnormal LFTs in a dose-dependent manner (for y-glutamyl transferase (yGT), alkaline phosphatase (ALP), alanine transaminase (ALT) and IgM). Multi-factorial analysis showed that UDCA treatment, irrespective of dose, was significantly better than placebo for all the variables. The 900 and 1200 mg doses were better than both 300 and 600 mg using yGT and total bilirubin as variables, better than 300 mg using ALP and IgM as variables, and better than 600 mg using albumin as a variable. No variables showed a significant difference between 900 and 1200 mg. CONCLUSION: The optimum dose of UDCA is 900 mg/day (equivalent to 13.5 mg/kg/day).     

中等剂量熊去氧胆酸治疗原发性胆汁性肝硬化的系统评价

目的评价长期应用中等剂量熊去氧胆酸治疗原发性胆汁性肝硬化的疗效及安全性。方法对全世界关于中等剂量(13～15mg·kg-1·g-1)熊去氧胆酸与安慰剂对照治疗原发性胆汁性肝硬化的随机对照试验进行系统评价。结果共纳入7项随机对照试验,累计1038例患者。熊去氧胆酸能显著改善患者的肝功能生化检测指标,但不能改善疲劳和瘙痒等症状。病程Ⅰ至Ⅱ期的患者治疗2年后肝脏组织学显著好于对照组(P=0.03),但分析所有患者时差异无统计学意义(P=0.08)。荟萃分析显示治疗组与对照组间死亡率(OR0.99,95%可信区间0.62～1.58)、肝病相关死亡率(1.05,0.53～2.05)、肝移植率(0.87,0.53～1.41)、死亡和(或)肝移植率(0.92,0.64～1.31)和肝功能失代偿率(0.94,0.60～1.49)差异无统计学意义。结论熊去氧胆酸能有效改善肝功能,但不能改善症状,也无足够证据支持熊去氧胆酸能延长患者的生存期。早期患者及早并长期应用熊去氧胆酸可能延缓肝脏组织学进展。     

Long-term ursodeoxycholic acid delays histological progression in primary biliary cirrhosis

Primary biliary cirrhosis (PBC) is a progressive cholestatic liver disease frequently leading to development of cirrhosis and its complications. Ursodeoxycholic acid (UDCA) is a beneficial medical therapy for patients with PBC. Improvement in some histological features, but not in histological stage, has been reported after 2 years of UDCA therapy. Thus, longer follow-up may be necessary to determine whether UDCA has a favorable effect on histological stage of disease and progression to cirrhosis. Our aim was to determine the long-term effects of UDCA therapy on histological stage and progression to cirrhosis in patients with PBC. Sixteen unselected patients with noncirrhotic PBC who had been on long-term UDCA therapy (13-15 mg/kg/d) for 6.6 +/- 0.4 years (range, 5-9 years) were identified and their histological finding during treatment compared with that of 51 noncirrhotic patients with PBC who had received ineffective therapy (D-penicillamine [DPCA] or placebo) for 5.6 +/- 0.07 years (range, 5-8 years). Histological stage was determined using the Ludwig classification. The rate of progression to cirrhosis (stage 4) was significantly less in the UDCA group than in the control group (13% vs. 49%; P =.009). Although the overall rate of progression of histological stage was less in the UDCA group than in the control group (50% vs. 71%), this difference was not significant (P =.1). A marked improvement in liver biochemistries and Mayo risk score was noted in all patients during UDCA therapy; however, this improvement was not significantly different between patients who progressed and those who did not. In conclusion, long-term UDCA therapy appeared to delay the development of cirrhosis in PBC.     

Effect of ursodeoxycholic acid on bile acid metabolism in primary biliary cirrhosis

We have compared the effect of ursodeoxycholic acid with placebo on the clinical state, blood liver chemistries and serum and urinary bile acids in four patients with primary biliary cirrhosis. All parameters were evaluated monthly, and bile acid composition was measured by capillary gas-liquid chromatography. At the time of admission, all patients showed intense pruritus, and their serum alkaline phosphatase, AST and ALT levels were elevated 4.3, 2.7 and 2.3 times over control values. Serum bile acids were elevated almost 38-fold with 2.5 times more cholic acid than chenodeoxycholic acid. Urinary bile acid output was elevated 28 times the control values, and 36% were 1 beta-hydroxycholic acid, 1 beta-hydroxydeoxycholic acid and hyocholic acid (3 alpha,6 alpha, 7 alpha-trihydroxy-5 beta-cholanoic acid). Three months of placebo administration did not significantly affect the clinical or biochemical presentations, and the serum and urinary bile acid composition did not change. In contrast, ursodeoxycholic acid feeding (12 to 15 mg per kg per day) for 6 months abolished pruritus in two and lessened itching in two subjects and reduced serum alkaline phosphatase, AST and ALT levels by 21, 35 and 47%, respectively. The mean values for the total serum bile acid concentrations in these patients declined 26% from the pretreatment value, but the proportion of ursodeoxycholic acid increased from 3 to 40% of the total bile acids; thus, total fasting serum endogenous bile acid levels decreased almost 50%. Similar changes were noted in the urinary bile acids, in which ursodeoxycholic acid became the major bile acid, and approximately 18% were hydroxylated at C-1, C-6 and C-21.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)     

Effect of ursodeoxycholic acid administration on biliary lipid secretion in primary biliary cirrhosis

Ursodeoxycholic acid (UDCA) has been reported to improve liver function tests when administered to patients with cholestatic liver diseases, such as primary biliary cirrhosis (PBC). However, its effects on biliary lipid metabolism in patients with PBC are still unknown. In this study we report the effect that UDCA (600 mg/day, for four weeks) had on biliary cholesterol saturation index, biliary bile acid pattern and pool size, and biliary lipid output in seven female patients (ages 34–58 years) with PBC, stages I to III. A significant improvement of liver function tests was observed after four weeks of treatment. Saturation index was significantly decreased from 1.23±0.1 to 0.7±0.08 (P<0.02); this effect was due to the significant decrease of biliary cholesterol concentration from 6.7±0.36 to 3.6±0.37 percent molar (P<0.02). A significant decrease of cholesterol output (from 88±9 to 55±10 μmol/hr, P<0.02) was also observed. The amount of cholic acid, the predominant bile acid in bile, significantly decreased (from 47.3±3.5 to 35.4±2.6 percent molar, P<0.02), as did amounts of chenodeoxycholic and deoxycholic acids, while the amount of UDCA rose from 1.6±1.0 to 34.0±1.3 percent molar (P<0.02). Total bile acid pool size was not affected by UDCA, but the evaluation of individual bile acid pool sizes showed an increased proportion of UDCA relative to the endogenous bile acids. The results of the study confirm the beneficial effect of UDCA on liver function tests in PBC patients and support the hypothesis that the improvement of these measurements may be due to replacement of toxic endogenous bile acids with UDCA.     

Effect of ursodeoxycholic acid in chronic hepatitis and primary biliary cirrhosis

Clinical and experimental investigations have suggested that ursodeoxycholic acid (ursodiol) may have cytoprotective or choleretic action and therefore be beneficial in patients with intrahepatic cholestasis or chronic liver disease. In an open-label study, we treated 45 patients with chronic hepatitis with 300 mg of ursodiol three times daily for six months. At four months, γ-glutamyl transpeptidase (γ-GTP) and leucine aminopeptidase levels had decreased. SGOT and SGPT levels also decreased significantly. Evaluation of histologic changes has not yet been completed. No significant differences in improvement of liver function tests were found in a comparison with 19 historical controls. We also studied eight patients with primary biliary cirrhosis, treated for more than one and a half years with 600 mg of ursodiol per day. At one month, itching diminished in five patients who had pruritus. ALPase and γ-GTP levels decreased significantly, and GOT and GPT levels were also reduced. IgM levels did not change, but the titer of antimitochondrial body decreased by half in two patients. Levels of glycoursodeoxycholic acid increased, and in three patients follow-up liver biopsy showed marked improvement. These preliminary results suggest that ursodiol is safe and effective for the treatment of chronic hepatitis and primary biliary cirrhosis, but a large-scale, controlled trial is needed.     

Long-term response of primary biliary cirrhosis (stage I) to therapy with ursodeoxycholic acid

We report about a 56-year-old asymptomatic female patient, who was examined in April 1991 for an increase of biochemical parameters of the liver. Based on the biochemical and serological results (abnormal cholestatic liver function tests, positive antimitochondrial antibodies) as well as liver biopsy primary biliary cirrhosis stage I was diagnosed. Therapy with ursodeoxycholic acid (12mg/kg body-weight/die) was started. Follow-up examinations indicated that cholestatic parameters had normalized and antimitochondrial antibodies became negative. In a further biopsy of the liver nearly regular liver parenchyma was demonstrated. Thus, therapy with ursodeoxycholic acid was stopped. However, in November 1992 cholestatic parameters increased again and, antimitochondrial antibodies recurred (subtype anti-M9: positive) without any clinical symptoms. Ursodeoxycholic acid therapy was reintroduced again. Within 3 months cholestatic parameters returned to normal and antimitochondrial antibodies were eliminated again. Since then ursodeoxycholic acid has been given continuously and a long-term remission as defined by clinical, serological and histological criteria could be maintained until today. This case report indicates a serological remission and a marked histological improvement in a female patient with an early stage of primary biliary cirrhosis (stage I) during therapy under ursodeoxycholic acid. It has to be discussed whether certain early stages of primary biliary cirrhosis with benign antimitochondrial antibody-profile (anti-M9: positive) respond well to long-term treatment with ursodeoxycholic acid.     

熊去氧胆酸治疗原发性胆汁性肝硬化患者早期应答预测1年疗效

目的 探讨早期预测熊去氧胆酸(UDCA)治疗原发性胆汁性肝硬化(PBC)患者疗效的方法.方法 回顾性分析26例PBC患者的临床资料,他们接受常规剂量的UDCA治疗,分别在3个月、6个月和9个月观察疗效,以血清ALP降低＞40％为应答标准,采用受试者工作特征(ROC)曲线下面积和Bland-Altman图分析一致性来预测1年时的疗效.结果 本组患者治疗3个月应答者9例(34.6％),6个月应答者9例(34.6％),9个月应答者14例(53.8％),1年应答者15例(57.7％);3个月内应答者ROC曲线下面积(0.83,p=0.004,95％CI 0.66～1.01)能较好判断患者1年的疗效,Bland-Altman一致性分析发现3个月应答者和12个月应答者ALP降低百分比的差值较好地分布在95％一致性界限内;3个月应答者与不应答者的年龄和入组时生化指标间无显著性差异.结论 PBC患者服用UDCA 3个月时血清ALP的下降水平可判断1年后的疗效.     

愈肝方联合熊去氧胆酸治疗原发性胆汁性肝硬化临床疗效分析

目的：观察中药愈肝方联合熊去氧胆酸（UDCA）治疗原发性胆汁性肝硬化（PBC）的临床疗效。方法：回顾性分析2007年1月-2010年12月在我院住院且符合纳入标准的PBC患者共66人,根据治疗方案不同,分为愈肝方与UDCA治疗组及UDCA治疗组,比较两组的临床疗效。结果：治疗4周后,愈肝方与UDCA组的好转率优于UDCA组,且在总胆红素、碱性磷酸酶两项主要生化指标方面均较UDCA组有显著下降。结论：愈肝方联合UDCA治疗原发性胆汁性肝硬化,较单用UDCA能更有效。