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Observational Study
. 2020 May 15;12(5):1429.
doi: 10.3390/nu12051429.

Effects of Branched-Chain Amino Acid (BCAA) Supplementation on the Progression of Advanced Liver Disease: A Korean Nationwide, Multicenter, Prospective, Observational, Cohort Study

Jung Gil Park  1 , Won Young Tak  2 , Soo Young Park  2 , Young Oh Kweon  2 , Woo Jin Chung  3 , Byoung Kuk Jang  3 , Si Hyun Bae  4 , Heon Ju Lee  1 , Jae Young Jang  5 , Ki Tae Suk  6 , Myung Jin Oh  7 , Jeong Heo  8 , Hyun Young Woo  8 , Se Young Jang  2 , Yu Rim Lee  2 , June Sung Lee  9 , Do Young Kim  10 , Seok Hyun Kim  11 , Jeong Ill Suh  12 , In Hee Kim  13 , Min Kyu Kang  1 , Won Kee Lee  14
Affiliations
Observational Study

Effects of Branched-Chain Amino Acid (BCAA) Supplementation on the Progression of Advanced Liver Disease: A Korean Nationwide, Multicenter, Prospective, Observational, Cohort Study

Jung Gil Park et al. Nutrients. .

Abstract

Background and aims: Clinical evidence for the benefits of branched-chain amino acids (BCAAs) is lacking in advanced liver disease. We evaluated the potential benefits of long-term oral BCAA supplementation in patients with advanced liver disease.

Methods: Liver cirrhosis patients with Child-Pugh (CP) scores from 8 to 10 were prospectively recruited from 13 medical centers. Patients supplemented with 12.45 g of daily BCAA granules over 6 months, and patients consuming a regular diet were assigned to the BCAA and control groups, respectively. The effects of BCAA supplementation were evaluated using the model for end-stage liver disease (MELD) score, CP score, serum albumin, serum bilirubin, incidence of cirrhosis-related events, and event-free survival for 24 months.

Results: A total of 124 patients was analyzed: 63 in the BCAA group and 61 in the control group. The MELD score (p = 0.009) and CP score (p = 0.011) significantly improved in the BCAA group compared to the control group over time. However, the levels of serum albumin and bilirubin in the BCAA group did not improve during the study period. The cumulative event-free survival was significantly improved in the BCAA group compared to the control group (HR = 0.389, 95% CI = 0.221-0.684, p < 0.001).

Conclusion: Long-term supplementation with oral BCAAs can potentially improve liver function and reduce major complications of cirrhosis in patients with advanced liver disease.

Keywords: amino acids; ascites; branched-chain; hepatic encephalopathy; liver cirrhosis; prognosis.

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Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare no conflicts of interest about this work.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Scheme of the study. * Adherence of patients to prescribed BCAAs was > 80%. BCAA, branched-chain amino acid.
Figure 2
Figure 2
Flow diagram of the study. HCC, hepatocellular carcinoma; BCAA, branched-chain amino acid.
Figure 3
Figure 3
Changes in the model for end-stage liver disease score (A), Child–Pugh score (B), serum albumin (C), and total bilirubin (D) in the BCAA and control groups over 2 years. MELD, model for end-stage liver disease; BCAA, branched-chain amino acid.
Figure 4
Figure 4
Cumulative cirrhosis-related event-free survival in the BCAA and control groups. BCAA, branched-chain amino acid; CP, Child–Pugh.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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