Clinical course of COVID-19 in patients with pre-existing decompensated cirrhosis: initial report from China
Xiaolong Qi, Jitao Wang, Xinyu Li, Zhengyan Wang, Yanna Liu, Hua Yang, Xiaodan Li, Jindong Shi, Huihua Xiang, Tao Liu, Norifumi Kawada, Hitoshi Maruyama, Zicheng Jiang, Fengmei Wang, Tetsuo Takehara, Don C Rockey, Shiv Kumar Sarin, COVID-Cirrhosis-CHESS Group, Xiaolong Qi, Jitao Wang, Xinyu Li, Zhengyan Wang, Yanna Liu, Hua Yang, Xiaodan Li, Jindong Shi, Huihua Xiang, Tao Liu, Norifumi Kawada, Hitoshi Maruyama, Zicheng Jiang, Fengmei Wang, Tetsuo Takehara, Don C Rockey, Shiv Kumar Sarin, COVID-Cirrhosis-CHESS Group
Abstract
Background: The clinical characteristics and disease course in COVID-19 patients with pre-existing decompensated cirrhosis has not been described so far.
Methods: In this case series, we report three patients with confirmed COVID-19 and pre-existing decompensated cirrhosis from three hospitals in Hubei, the epicenter of the outbreak in China.
Result: Patient 1 was a 53-year-old man with hepatitis B virus-related cirrhosis, portal hypertension, and ascites. Though receiving intensive support, he died of irreversible multiple organ dysfunction syndrome 48 days after the onset of the illness. Patient 2 was a 75-year-old woman with a history of schistosomiasis-related cirrhosis, portal hypertension, and ascites. Her family members requested that invasive rescue measures not be undertaken, and she died of acute respiratory distress syndrome 40 days after presenting with COVID-19 infection. Patient 3 was an 87-year-old man with alcohol-related cirrhosis, portal hypertension, and esophageal variceal hemorrhage. He was discharged from the hospital 29 days after illness onset.
Conclusion: The case series raise the possibility that decompensated cirrhosis may be a risk factor for a poor outcome in patients with COVID-19.
Keywords: Advanced chronic liver disease; COVID-19; Clinical characteristics.
Conflict of interest statement
The authors have declared no conflict of interest related to the study.
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Source: PubMed