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Clinical Summary

Hand grip strength predicts mortality risk in patients with cirrhosis

Takeaway

  • Reduced hand grip strength (HGS) is associated with an increased mortality risk in patients with liver cirrhosis.

Why this matters

  • This bedside measurement is fast, noninvasive, inexpensive, and practical, and can be performed repeatedly in patients with cirrhosis to assess nutritional status and mortality risk.

Study design

  • Researchers reviewed the health records of consecutive patients admitted to a single hospital with cirrhosis (N=563; age ≥18 years; 375 men), identifying mortality predictors using sex-stratified multivariate analysis.
  • Funding: Japan Society for the Promotion of Science.

Key results

  • Researchers found that HGS, not body composition, was independently associated with mortality:
    • Men: HR, 0.96 (P<.01).
    • Women: HR, 0.91 (P=.02).
  • Low HGS in both men (HGS <30 kg) and women (HGS <15 kg) was associated with higher mortality risk:
    • Men: HR, 2.09 (P<.001).
    • Women: HR, 2.14 (P=.02).
  • HGS allowed for stratification by sex-specific mortality risk in patients with cirrhosis, regardless of comorbid hepatocellular carcinoma or cirrhosis severity.

Limitations

  • The study was retrospective and single-center, and did not analyze some sex-specific differences.

References


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