The utility of the ¹³ C-methacetin breath test in predicting the long-term survival of patients with decompensated cirrhosis

Abstract

One hundred and twenty-three patients were included. A significant inverse correlation was found between delta over baseline at the 15 min point (DOB₁₅) after ingestion of ¹³C-methacetin and the Child-Pugh score (r = -0.411, p < 0.001). In multivariate analysis, DOB₁₅ ≤ 4.5‰ was associated with mortality, [HR = 2.58 95% CI (1.17-5.69)]. In conclusion, our results confirm the utility of ¹³C-MeBT as a simple, noninvasive tool to quantitatively assess the liver's functional reserve and as a potential predictor of long-term survival in patients with decompensated cirrhosis.