Anticoagulation for Non-occlusive Portal Vein Thrombosis in Patients With Liver Cirrhosis

Overview

The purpose of this study is to determine the safety and efficacy of anticoagulation in the treatment of non-occlusive portal vein thrombosis in patients with liver cirrhosis.

Portal vein thrombosis is a common complication of liver cirrhosis, especially at the decompensated or advanced stage. The reported prevalence was 10-25% by ultrasound. The effect of PVT on the natural history of liver cirrhosis is not clear, especially the non-occlusive PVT. According to a recent large prospective study (n=1243), the development of PVT and the progression of liver disease are two separate consequences of a common mechanism. It was hypothesized that the activation of coagulation factors in the cirrhotic liver or the portal venous system is the common mechanism for the progression of liver disease, on the one hand, and the development of PVT on the other. A recent randomized clinical trial has shown that enoxaparin therapy for 48 weeks can prevent disease progression and PVT in patients with Child class B-C cirrhosis. Besides, emerging evidences have shown that 30-50% of patients with cirrhosis and partial PVT can achieve this spontaneous recanalization. So what the role of anticoagulation played in the management of PVT in liver cirrhosis is still contraversal. Anticoagulation therapy was also shown very effective with a high recanalization rate of 42-100%. But this data was mostly derived from retrospective, non-randomized study and no well-designed randomized controlled trial has been conducted to evaluate the safety and efficacy of anticoagulation for non-occlusive PVT.

Conditions

Interventions

Eligibility

Outcomes