Prevalence and risk factors for cirrhotic cardiomyopathy: a prospective cross-sectional study

Area of Science:

• Cardiology
• Hepatology
• Internal Medicine

Background:

• Cirrhosis significantly impacts cardiac structure and function.
• Cirrhotic cardiomyopathy (CCM) is a complex clinical syndrome in patients with liver cirrhosis.
• Understanding CCM prevalence and risk factors is crucial for patient management.

Purpose of the Study:

• To assess cardiac structure and function in patients with cirrhosis.
• To determine the prevalence of CCM across different etiologies of liver cirrhosis.
• To identify independent risk factors associated with CCM development.

Main Methods:

• Echocardiography was used to diagnose CCM in 131 hospitalized cirrhotic patients (aged 18-75).
• Patients with pre-existing heart conditions or other significant comorbidities were excluded.
• Demographic and clinical data were compared between CCM and non-CCM groups to identify risk factors.

Main Results:

• The overall prevalence of CCM was 24.4%.
• CCM prevalence was higher in patients with ascites (31.4%) and portal vein thrombosis (PVT) (42.9%).
• Older age (OR 1.058) and PVT (OR 2.999) were identified as independent risk factors for CCM.

Conclusions:

• CCM affects nearly a quarter of cirrhotic patients, irrespective of cirrhosis etiology.
• Ascites and PVT are associated with a higher prevalence of CCM.
• Older age and PVT are significant independent risk factors, warranting further investigation in larger cohorts.