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. 2013 Dec 14;19(46):8745-51.
doi: 10.3748/wjg.v19.i46.8745.

Psychometric hepatic encephalopathy score for diagnosis of minimal hepatic encephalopathy in China

Su-Wen Li  1 , Kai Wang  1 , Yong-Qiang Yu  1 , Hai-Bao Wang  1 , Yuan-Hai Li  1 , Jian-Ming Xu  1
Affiliations

Psychometric hepatic encephalopathy score for diagnosis of minimal hepatic encephalopathy in China

Su-Wen Li et al. World J Gastroenterol. .

Abstract

Aim: To construct normal values for the tests of the psychometric hepatic encephalopathy score (PHES) and to evaluate its usefulness in the diagnosis of minimal hepatic encephalopathy (MHE) among Chinese individuals with cirrhosis.

Methods: The five tests of PHES, number connection test-A (NCT-A), number connection test-B, serial dotting test, line tracing test and digit symbol test (DST), were administered to all enrolled subjects in a quiet room with sufficient light. Cirrhotic subjects with overt HE were excluded by the West-Haven criteria and a detailed neurological examination. Based on the nomograms of healthy volunteers, the patients were classified as having MHE when their PHES was less than -4.

Results: In total, 146 healthy volunteers completed all the PHES tests. Age and education years were confirmed to be predictors of all five tests. In total, 53 patients with liver cirrhosis completed the PHES. Of the patients with liver cirrhosis, 24 (45.3%), 22(41.5%) and 7(13.2%) had Child-Pugh grades A, B and C, respectively. MHE was diagnosed in 26 patients (49.1%). Compared with compensated cirrhotic patients (Child A), decompensated cirrhotic patients (Child B and C) had a higher proportion of MHE (65.5% vs 29.2%). No differences in age and education years were found between the MHE and non-MHE groups. NCT-A and DST were able to diagnose MHE with a sensitivity of 76.9% and a specificity of 96.3% (AUC = 0.866, K = 0.735).

Conclusion: The proportion of MHE is associated with liver function. NCT-A and DST are simple tools that can be used for the diagnosis of MHE in China.

Keywords: Cirrhosis; Digit symbol test; Minimal hepatic encephalopathy; Neuropsychological tests; Number connection test; Psychometric hepatic encephalopathy score.

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Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Distribution of volunteers according to age.
Figure 2
Figure 2
Comparison of education years between healthy volunteers of various age groups (aP < 0.05).
Figure 3
Figure 3
Distribution of the results from the digit symbol test in healthy volunteers according to age (A) and education years (B).
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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