摘要
BACKGROUND The albumin-bilirubin(ALBI)score was developed as a prognostic tool for pa-tients with hepatocellular carcinoma.However,its new role as an indicator of liver fibrosis in chronic hepatitis C virus(HCV)patients is under investigation.AIM To investigate the ALBI score as a non-invasive means of assessing the extent of liver fibrosis in chronic HCV patients.METHODS We evaluated hospital records of 231 eligible chronic HCV patients from King Fahad Specialist Hospital in Buraydah,Saudi Arabia.Demographic/clinical data,liver function tests,non-invasive tests for liver fibrosis,and ALBI score/grades were evaluated before and two years after direct-acting antivirals(DAA)treatment.RESULTS The median ALBI score improved from-2.51 to-2.62 after DAA treatment(P<0.05).Additionally,the ALBI score improved irrespective of the level of fibrosis,with improvement more evident in patients with advanced fibrosis(-2.26 to-2.41,P<0.05).The ALBI score showed significant positive correlation with non-invasive tests for liver fibrosis(aspartate aminotransferase/alanine aminotransferase ratio,aspartate aminotransferase to platelet ratio index,and fibrosis-4 index)at baseline and after DAA treatment(P<0.05).Moreover,the receiver operating characteristic curve demonstrated ALBI score’s ability to predict advanced fibrosis(F3,F4)[area under the curve=0.76,(95%confidence interval:0.70-0.81),P<0.001,best cut-off value=-2.38(sensitivity 60%and specificity 83%)].CONCLUSION The ALBI score appears to be a useful non-invasive marker for assessing liver fibrosis in chronic HCV patients and may serve as a valuable tool for monitoring hepatic function during and after DAA treatment.
