1. Reduced handgrip strength is predictive of poor survival among patients with liver cirrhosis: A sex‐stratified analysis.
- Author
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Hanai, Tatsunori, Shiraki, Makoto, Imai, Kenji, Suetsugu, Atsushi, Takai, Koji, Moriwaki, Hisataka, and Shimizu, Masahito
- Subjects
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CIRRHOSIS of the liver , *BODY composition , *SKELETAL muscle , *GRIP strength , *PROGNOSIS , *MORTALITY - Abstract
Aim: Handgrip strength (HGS) is a marker of sarcopenia and has been used to stratify an individual's risk of death. We aimed to assess the prognostic significance of HGS in patients with liver cirrhosis. Methods: In this retrospective study, we collated data of 563 consecutive patients admitted to our hospital with cirrhosis (375 men). A dynamometer was used to measure HGS. Body composition (including skeletal muscle and adipose tissue volumes) was estimated using computed tomography. Predictors of mortality were identified using sex‐stratified multivariate analyses. Results: After adjustments for age, cirrhosis etiology, Child–Pugh score, and other confounding variables, HGS, but not body composition, was independently associated with mortality in male patients (hazard ratio [HR], 0.96; 95% confidence interval [CI], 0.94–0.99; P < 0.01) and female patients (HR, 0.91; 95% CI, 0.84–0.99; P = 0.02). Men with low HGS (<30 kg) had a higher risk of mortality (HR, 2.09; 95% CI, 1.39–3.17; P < 0.001), as did women with low (<15 kg) HGS (HR, 2.14; 95% CI, 1.16–4.01; P = 0.02). We could stratify the sex‐specific risk of mortality in cirrhotic patients using HGS, regardless of coexistent hepatocellular carcinoma and the Child–Pugh class. Conclusions: Reduced HGS, rather than skeletal muscle and adipose tissue volumes, is associated with an increased risk of mortality in patients of both sexes with liver cirrhosis. Measurement of HGS is a simple, cost‐effective, and appropriate bedside assessment for the prediction of survival in patients with cirrhosis. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]
- Published
- 2019
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