Table 1. Demographics and clinical features of the study population.
| CTRL | NC-CLD | LC | p | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| N (%) | 56(35) | 39(24.4) | 65(40.6) | – |
| Age (years), mean ± SD | 64.9 ± 11.0 | 56.1 ± 13.6* | 63.6 ± 11.5 §§ | <0.01 |
| Male, n (%) | 29 (51.8) | 18 (46.2) | 46(70.8)*§ | <0.05 |
| Child-Pugh ClassA, n(%)/B, n(%)/C, n(%) | – | – | 21(32.3)/27(41.5)/17(26.2) | – |
| Aetiology | ||||
| Infective, n (%) | – | 19(48.6) | 18(27.7) | <0.01 |
| Alcoholic, n (%) | – | 1(2.6) | 17(26.1) | <0.01 |
| Metabolic, n (%) | – | 17(43.6) | 13(20.0) | <0.01 |
| Autoimmune, n (%) | – | 1(2.6) | 3(4.7) | 0.02 |
| Infect/Alcoh, n (%) | – | 0(0.0) | 9(13.8) | <0.01 |
| Infect/Metab, n (%) | – | 0(0.0) | 1(1.6) | <0.01 |
| Alcoh/Metab, n (%) | – | 1(2.6) | 4(6.1) | <0.01 |
| Diabetes Mellitus, n (%) | 4(7.1) | 5(12.8) | 27(41.5)**§§ | <0.01 |
| ALT (U/L), mean ± SD | 25.1 ± 7.9 | 52.3 ± 48.7** | 52.2 ± 42.9** | <0.01 |
| Bilirubin (mg/dL), mean ± SD | 0.6 ± 0.3 | 0.8 ± 0.5 | 2.6 ± 2.8**§§ | <0.01 |
| eGFR (mL/min), mean ± SD | 87.5 ± 26.0 | 84.6 ± 18.7 | 83.6 ± 36.4 | ns |
| Current Smoker, n (%) | 9(14.3) | 9(23.1) | 18(27.7) | ns |
| BMI (kg/m2), mean ± SD | 26.0 ± 3.4 | 27.9 ± 4.3 | −a | ns |
| Lung disease, n (%) | 0(0.0) | 1(2.6) | 7(11.2)* | <0.05 |
| AUBP, mean ± SD | 1810.3 ± 629.6 | 1349.7 ± 500.7** | 887.3 ± 478.7**§§ | <0.01 |
CTRL, healthy controls; NC-CLD, non-cirrhotic chronic liver disease; LC, liver cirrhosis; difference between groups were calculated with ANOVA test for continuous variables or with χ2 test for categorical variables; Bonferroni correction was used for multiple testing; *and **, p < 0.05 and p < 0.01 compared to CTRL; §and §§, p < 0.01 and 0.05 compared to NC-CLD; anot calculated due to its lack of significance in patient with decompensated liver disease (43 on 65 cirrhotic patients, 66.2%); ALT, Alanine Transaminase; eGFR, estimated glomerular filtration rate; BMI, body mass index.