A simple online calculator detects liver cirrhosis patients at high risk for clinical complications (Free)

Medical Xpress / CeMM Research Center for Molecular Medicine / Journal of Hepatology ^ | Oct. 4, 2022 | Jiří Reiniš et al

[ConservativeMind]

Researchers joined efforts to use machine learning and management of patients with cirrhosis to develop a non-invasive algorithm that can help clinicians identify patients with cirrhosis at highest risk for severe complications.

There are two clinical stages of liver cirrhosis: compensated and decompensated. Patients with compensated liver cirrhosis have very few or even no symptoms. However, patients may progress decompensated cirrhosis, which occurs with severe complications.

Unfortunately, the measurement of the risk of decompensation in patients with compensated cirrhosis currently requires an invasive procedure. i.e., the measurement of the hepatic venous pressure gradient (HVPG). An elevated HVPG ≥10 mmHg is associated with a higher probability of complications. Patients with an even higher HVPG of ≥16 mmHg are at imminent risk for hepatic decompensation.

In a study, machine learning models were trained on blood test parameters obtained from patients with compensated cirrhosis to detect elevated levels of portal vein pressure, thereby identifying those at risk for developing clinical complications.

HVPG measurements were performed in 163 compensated cirrhosis patients in whom blood samples were simultaneously obtained in order to determine a range of 124 biomarkers.

Out of the entire set of clinical variables, three and five optimal parameters for the detection of high-risk patients were computationally determined. In the VICIS patient cohort, the model performed excellently for the identification of patients with HVPG values of ≥10 mmHg and ≥16 mmHg, respectively.

The researchers tested their machine learning model on a combined cohort of 1,232 patients with compensated cirrhosis from 8 European clinical centers. The novel approach was confirmed to be of excellent diagnostic value in the overall cohort and importantly is based on 3 or 5 widely available laboratory parameters only.

The researchers developed an online calculator to allow clinicians to calculate the risk of decompensation for their patients with compensated cirrhosis.

[ConservativeMind]

The free, online calculator only needs the following blood values:

3 Parameter (slightly less accurate): Platelets, Bilirubin, and INR

5 Parameter (slightly more accurate): Platelets, Bilirubin, Cholinesterase, Gamma-glutamyl transferase, and aPTT

It is available here:

3 and 5 Parameter Model to estimate the severity of portal hypertension (HVPG) in patients with compensated advanced chronic liver disease (cACLD)

Clinically significant portal hypertension (CSPH, i.e., HVPG≥10mmHg) was properly identified 77.5% with the 3 Parameter test and 78.9% with the 5 Parameter test.

The test identified severe PH (i.e. HVPG≥16mmHg) correctly 73.7% with the 3 Parameter test and 82.8% with the 5 Parameter test, according to what I gathered from the abstract.

[ConservativeMind]

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[Drew68]

A simple online calculator detects liver cirrhosis

Adding up my liquor store receipts?

[sauropod]

bkmk

[rexthecat]

I drank heavily for 50 years. When I stopped drinking at 70 my doctor ran a lot of tests. He told me that my liver was normal, with no sign of a fatty liver or cirrhosis. I was surprised to say the least!

[ConservativeMind]

You are a VERY rare heavy drinker.

[Nifster]

Good news

[RummyChick]

did you get the fibroscan? My blood levels are normal but only through persistance did I discover fatty liver disease

Anyone know of a converter for platelets. My test results are in K/cumm and I can’t figure out how to turn it into G/L for the calculator

[RummyChick]

“This online tool was developed to aid in assessing the clinical risk for subsequent hepatic decompensation in patients with compensated advanced chronic liver disease (cACLD) or compensated cirrhosis.”

So does this calculator have any validity for those that don’t have advanced chronic liver disease or compensated cirrhosis?

[girlangler]

LOL. Me too.

[UnwashedPeasant]

If anyone is researching cirrhosis cures, check out Dr. Burton Berkson’s Alpha Lipoic Acid protocol for cirrhosis and other liver damage.

It consists mostly of alpha lipoic acid 600 mg, silymarin (milk thistle extract) 900 mg, and selenium 400 mcg, taken daily in divided oral doses.

There are some youtube videos.

[telescope115]

I have never seen this calculator, but I used a different one for MELD score, since my liver was already decompensated.
MELD ( for “Model for End stage Liver Disease”) scoring is determined thru bloodwork and is an indicator of how bad the condition of the liver really is.
If a cirrhosis patient’s score gets high enough, the computer database bumps that person to the top of the list, or near the top, where that person is, hopefully, matched to a donor liver without waiting too long.
It’s cool to see this. I never did.

[telescope115]

I have never seen this calculator, but I used a different one for MELD score, since my liver was already decompensated.
MELD ( for “Model for End stage Liver Disease”) scoring is determined thru bloodwork and is an indicator of how bad the condition of the liver really is.
If a cirrhosis patient’s score gets high enough, the computer database bumps that person to the top of the list, or near the top, where that person is, hopefully, matched to a donor liver without waiting too long.
It’s cool to see this. I never did.

[telescope115]

My cirrhosis cure was a new liver.