Autoimmune hepatitis (AIH)/primary biliary cholangitis (PBC) overlap syndrome is associated with an increased rate of certain cirrhotic complications; however, AIH/PBC overlap syndrome is not necessarily associated with adverse clinical outcomes such as mortality after adjusting for demographics and comorbidities, according to a study presented at the AASLD Liver Meeting.
The retrospective study used 2016 to 2019 data from the Healthcare Cost and Utilization Project/Nationwide Inpatient Sample to identify patients with AIH (n=2,069), PBC (n=1,213), and AIH/PBC overlap (n=234). Researchers assessed complications of cirrhosis, in-patient mortality, septic shock, respiratory failure, and total cost of hospitalization.
Compared with AIH, patients with AIH/PBC overlap were more likely to have:
- Ascites (odds ratio [OR], 3.21; P<.001); and
- Portal hypertension (OR, 3.85; P<.001).
No significant differences existed between patients with AIH/PBC overlap and PBC.
Patients with AIH/PBC overlap had a higher prevalence of:
- Sjogren’s syndrome (P<.001);
- Systemic lupus erythematosus (P<.001); and
- Systemic sclerosis (P<.001).
Patients with AIH/PBC overlap also had greater rheumatologic disease (26.5%) compared with AIH (8.31%; P≤.001) and PBC (8.99%; P≤.001).
The researchers observed no significant differences in inpatient mortality, sepsis, respiratory failure, length of hospital stays, and total costs across all groups.
Reference
Goyal RM, Bansal B, Medina-Morales E, et al. Comparison of inpatient outcomes and characteristics of autoimmune hepatitis-primary biliary cirrhosis overlap syndrome with autoimmune hepatitis, and primary biliary cirrhosis in the United States 2016-2019: a nationally representative study. Abstract 4300. Presented at the 2024 American Association for the Study of Liver Diseases’ 75th Liver Meeting; November 15–19, 2024; San Diego.
