Superiority of the Child-Pugh classification to quantitative liver function tests for assessing prognosis of liver cirrhosis

Abstract

To evaluate the prognostic value of quantitative liver function tests in comparison with established prognostic variables, the data of 47 patients with liver cirrhosis were analysed. A total of 16 variables, comprising the galactose elimination capacity and the indocyanine green clearance, the Child-Pugh classification, and several clinical and biochemical variables were subjected to Kaplan-Meier life-table analysis and Cox proportional hazards regression analysis. As independent variables, poor prognosis was associated significantly with increasing Child-Pugh score (p less than 0.00001), whereas the galactose elimination capacity (p = 0.03) and the indocyanine green clearance (p less than 0.001) were less sensitive indicators. The regression analysis showed prognostic value in decreasing sequence for Child-Pugh classification, age, sex, history of upper GI haemorrhage, and alkaline phosphatase activity. The quantitative liver function tests evaluated in the present work have less prognostic value than routinely accessible variables.