0. Results:  Ninety-four patients received sorafenib until August 2010. The overall incidence of treatment-related adverse events was 98% of patients. Skin toxicities, including palmar-plantar erythrodysesthesia syndrome, rash, pruritus and alopecia, were the most common adverse events and were observed in 58 patients (62%). Hypertension was observed in 23 patients (24%). The median survival time was 12.5 months among the total patients. The patients with skin toxicities showed significantly longer survival than the patients without these toxicities (hazard ratio, 0.449; 95% confidence interval, 0.256–0.786; P = 0.005).

Hypertension had no correlation with survival. Skin toxicities check details were also significant

prognostic factors in a multivariate analysis (hazard ratio, 0.522; 95% confidence interval, 0.274–0.997; P = 0.049), along with Child–Pugh class and α-fetoprotein level. The median development time for skin toxicities was 21 days. Conclusion:  Skin toxicities occur commonly at the early phase in patients treated with sorafenib, and could be a promising surrogate marker for the treatment outcome. “
“The association between sarcopenia and nutritional status is thought to be an important problem in patients with cirrhosis. In this study, we investigated whether nutritional factors were related to sarcopenia in patients with liver cirrhosis. The subjects were www.selleckchem.com/products/EX-527.html 50 patients with cirrhosis aged 41 years or older. In this study, the subjects were interviewed about their dietary habits, and their daily physical activity was surveyed using a pedometer. The skeletal muscle mass index (SMI) was calculated using the appendicular skeletal muscle mass (ASM) measured by bioelectric impedance analysis. The handgrip strength was measured using a hand dynamometer. Sarcopenia was defined by find more SMI and handgrip strength. The patients with cirrhosis were categorized as normal group or sarcopenia group, and the two groups were compared. Univariate

and multivariate logistic regression modeling were used to identify the relevance for sarcopenia in patients with cirrhosis. Height (odds ratio (OR), 5.336; 95% confidence interval [CI], 1.063–26.784; P = 0.042), energy intake per ideal bodyweight (IBW) (OR, 5.882; 95% CI, 1.063–32.554; P = 0.042) and number of steps (OR, 4.767; 95% CI, 1.066–21.321; P = 0.041) were independent relevant factors for sarcopenia. Moreover, a significantly greater number of the patients in the sarcopenia group had low values for both parameters’ energy intake per IBW and number of steps. Our results suggest that walking 5000 or more steps per day and maintaining a total energy intake of 30 kcal/IBW may serve as a reference for lifestyle guidelines for compensated cirrhotic patients. “
“Hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection is a major cause of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) and chronic liver disease worldwide.