Current approaches to the management of patients with cirrhotic ascites

This review describes current approaches to the management of patients with cirrhotic ascites in relation to the severity of its clinical manifestations. The PubMed database, the Google Scholar retrieval system, the Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews, and the reference lists from related articles were used to search for relevant publications. Articles corresponding to the aim of the review were selected for 1991-2018 using the keywords:“liver cirrhosis,”“portal hypertension,”“ascites,”“pathogenesis,”“diagnostics,” and “treatment.” Uncomplicated and refractory ascites in patients with cirrhosis were the inclusion criteria. The literature analysis has shown that despite the achievements of modern hepatology, the presence of ascites is associated with poor prognosis and high mortality. The key to successful management of patients with ascites may be the stratification of the risk of an adverse outcome and personalized therapy. Pathogenetically based approach to the choice of pharmacotherapy and optimization of minimally invasive methods of treatment may improve the quality of life and increase the survival rate of this category of patients.

Antiangiogenic therapy for portal hypertension in liver cirrhosis: Current progress and perspectives

Developing medicines for hemodynamic disorders that are characteristic of cirrhosis of the liver is a relevant problem in modern hepatology. The increase in hepatic vascular resistance to portal blood flow and subsequent hyperdynamic circulation underlie portal hypertension(PH) and promote its progression, despite the formation of portosystemic collaterals. Angiogenesis and vascular bed restructurization play an important role in PH pathogenesis as well. In this regard, strategic directions in the therapy for PH in cirrhosis include selectively decreasing hepatic vascular resistance while preserving or increasing portal blood flow, and correcting hyperdynamic circulation and pathological angiogenesis. The aim of this review is to describe the mechanisms of angiogenesis in PH and the methods of antiangiogenic therapy. The Pub Med database, the Google Scholar retrieval system, and the reference lists from related articles were used to search for relevant publications. Articles corresponding to the aim of the review were selected for 2000-2017 using the keywords: "liver cirrhosis", "portal hypertension", "pathogenesis", "angiogenesis", and "antiangiogenic therapy". Antiangiogenic therapy for PH was the inclusion criterion. In this review, we have described angiogenesis inhibitors and their mechanism of action in relation to PH. Although most of them were studie donly in animal experiments, this selective therapy for abnormally growing newly formed vessels is pathogenetically reasonable to treat PH and associated complications.

Mechanisms of adaptation of the hepatic vasculature to the deteriorating conditions of blood circulation in liver cirrhosis

Pub Med, EMBASE, Orphanet, MIDLINE, Google Scholar and Cochrane Library were searched for articles published between 1983 and 2015. Relevant articles were selected by using the following terms: "Liver cirrhosis", "Endothelial dysfunction", "Sinusoidal remodeling", "Intrahepatic angiogenesis" and "Pathogenesis of portal hypertension". Then the reference lists of identified articles were searched for other relevant publications as well. Besides gross hepatic structural disorders related to diffuse fibrosis and formation of regenerative nodules, the complex morphofunctional rearrangement of the hepatic microvascular bed and intrahepatic angiogenesis also play important roles in hemodynamic disturbances in liver cirrhosis. It is characterized by endothelial dysfunction and impaired paracrine interaction between activated stellate hepatocytes and sinusoidal endotheliocytes, sinusoidal remodeling and capillarization, as well as development of the collateral microcirculation. In spite of the fact that complex morphofunctional rearrangement of the hepatic microvascular bed and intrahepatic angiogenesis in liver cirrhosis are the compensatory-adaptive reaction to the deteriorating conditions of blood circulation, they contribute to progression of disease and development of serious complications, in particular, related to portal hypertension.Pub Med,EMBASE,Orphanet,MIDLINE,Google Scholar and Cochrane Library were searched for articles published between 1983 and 2015.Relevant articles were selected by using the following terms:"Liver cirrhosis","Endothelial dysfunction","Sinusoidal remodeling","Intrahepatic angiogenesis"and"Pathogenesis of portal hypertension".Then the reference lists of identified articles were searched for other relevant publications as well.Besides gross hepatic structural disorders related to diffuse fibrosis and formation of regenerative nodules,the complex morphofunctional rearrangement of the hepatic microvascular bed and intrahepatic angiogenesis also play important roles in hemodynamic disturbances in liver cirrhosis.It is characterized by endothelial dysfunction and impaired paracrine interaction between activated stellate hepatocytes and sinusoidal endotheliocytes,sinusoidal remodeling and capillarization,as well as development of the collateral microcirculation.In spite of the fact that complex morphofunctional rearrangement of the hepatic microvascular bed and intrahepatic angiogenesis in liver cirrhosis are the compensatory-adaptive reaction to the deteriorating conditions of blood circulation,they contribute to progression of disease and development of serious complications,in particular,related to portal hypertension.

Hepatic hydrothorax:An update and review of the literature

This review considers the modern concepts of pathogenesis,diagnostic methods,and treatment principles of hepatic hydrothorax(HH).HH is the excessive(>500 mL)accumulation of transudate in the pleural cavity in patients with decompensated liver cirrhosis but without cardiopulmonary and pleural diseases.It causes respiratory failure which aggravates the clinical course of liver cirrhosis,and the emergence of spontaneous bacterial pleural empyema may be the cause of death.The information was collected from the PubM ed database,the Google Scholar retrieval system,the Cochrane reviews,and the reference lists from relevant publications for 1994-2016 using the keywords:"liver cirrhosis","portal hypertension","hepatic hydrothorax","pathogenesis","diagnostics",and"treatment".To limit the scope of this review,only articles dealing with uncomplicated hydrothorax in patients with liver cirrhosis were included.The analysis of the data showed that despite the progress of modern hepatology,the presence of HH is associated with poor prognosis and high mortality.Most patients suffering from it are candidates for orthotopic liver transplantation.In routine clinical practice,stratification of the risk for an adverse outcome and the subsequent determination of individual therapeutic strategies may be the keys to the successful management of the patient’s condition.The development of pathogenetic pharmacotherapy and optimization of minimally invasive treatment will improve the quality of life and increase the survival rate among patients with HH.

Restructuring of the vascular bed in response to hemodynamic disturbances in portal hypertension

In recent years, defined progress has been made in understanding the mechanisms of hemodynamic disturbances occurring in liver cirrhosis, which are based on portal hypertension. In addition to pathophysiological disorders related to endothelial dysfunction, it was revealed: There is the restructuring of the vasculature, which includes vascular remodeling and angiogenesis. In spite of the fact that these changes are the compensatory-adaptive response to the deteriorating conditions of blood circulation, taken together, they contribute to the development and progression of portal hypertension causing severe complications such as bleeding from esophageal varices. Disruption of systemic and organ hemodynamics and the formation of portosystemic collaterals in portal hypertension commence with neovascularization and splanchnic vasodilation due to the hypoxia of the small intestine mucosa. In this regard, the goal of comprehensive treatment may be to influence on the chemokines, proinflammatory cytokines, and angiogenic factors(vascular endothelial growth factor, placental growth factor, platelet-derived growth factor and others) that lead to the development of these disorders. This review is to describe the mechanisms of restructuring of the vascular bed in response to hemodynamic disturbances in portal hypertension. Development of pathogenetic methods, which allow correcting portal hypertension, will improve the efficiency of conservative therapy aimed at prevention and treatment of its inherent complications.

Left atrial appendage aneurysm: A case report

BACKGROUND An aneurysm of the left atrial appendage is one of the rare but potentially hazardous heart defects.The risk of lethal complications grows with its size.To date,about 150 cases of this defect have been described in the literature.We present a case of left atrial appendage aneurysm with the deformation of the mitral valve and the left main coronary and circumflex artery,which required mitral valve annuloplasty and bifurcation stenting.CASE SUMMARY A 58-year-old man presented to our hospital complaining of shortness of breath,general weakness,dizziness during physical exertion,and fatigue.Based on the results of echocardiography,an aneurysm of the left atrium was suspected.A free-breathing real-time cine magnetic resonance imaging with electrocardiograph synchronization confirmed the diagnosis of left atrial appendage aneurysm.The patient underwent an aneurysmectomy via a median sternotomy with cardiopulmonary bypass.Intraoperative transesophageal echocardiography revealed relative mitral insufficiency that was corrected with an annuloplasty ring.Intraoperative coronary angiogram showed impaired blood flow in the left main coronary and circumflex artery and 60%stenosis.For this reason,bifurcation stenting was performed.The patient had an uneventful postoperative clinical course and was discharged from the hospital on the 10th day in a satisfactory condition.CONCLUSION Left atrial appendage aneurysm is a rare and dangerous heart pathology that requires surgery to prevent related complications.

Risk score for predicting abdominal complications after coronary artery bypass grafting

BACKGROUND Although early abdominal complications after coronary artery bypass grafting(CABG)with cardiopulmonary bypass(CPB)are rare,the associated mortality remains high.AIM To develop a risk score for the prediction of early abdominal complications after CABG with CPB.METHODS This retrospective study was performed in the Federal State Budgetary Establishment“Federal Center of Cardiovascular Surgery”of the Ministry of Health of Russia(the city of Chelyabinsk)and included data of 6586 patients who underwent CABG with CPB during 2011-2017.The risk factors taken for evaluation were compared between patients with early abdominal complications(n=73)and without them(n=6513).We identified the most important risk factors and their influence on the development of early abdominal complications after CABG with CPB.RESULTS Gender and the presence of postinfarction cardiosclerosis,chronic kidney disease,or diabetes in the anamnesis did not affect the occurrence of abdominal complications.The leading risk factors of the early abdominal complications after CABG with CPB were multifocal atherosclerosis,extracorporeal membrane oxygenation,intra-aortic balloon pump,atrial fibrillation,perioperative myocardial infarction,and the need for resternotomy in the postoperative period.The average value of the predicted probability was 0.087±0.015 in patients with early abdominal complications after CABG with CPB and 0.0094±0.0003 in patients without these complications.The percentage of correct classification turned out to be 98.9%.After calculating a score for each of the leading risk factors,we counted a total score for each particular patient.The highest risk was noted in patients with a total score of 7 or more.CONCLUSION The developed score predicts the risk of early abdominal complications after CABG with CPB and makes it possible to stratify patients by risk groups.