Lessons from “real life experience” of rifaximin use in the management of recurrent hepatic encephalopathy

Table 1 Baseline characteristics of study patients (n = 62)

Demographic characteristics
Age, mean ± SD, yr	62 ± 10
Male sex, n (%)	45 (73)
Cirrhosis etiology, n (%)
Alcohol	41 (66)
Alcohol withdrawal, n (%)	34/41 (83)
Hepatitis-B or C virus	16 (26)
Non-alcoholic fatty liver disease	10 (16)
Other	7 (11)
Previous liver related complication, n (%)
HE	62 (100)
Gastrointestinal bleeding	28 (45)
Ascites	39 (63)
Renal failure	24 (39)
Hepatocellular carcinoma	14 (23)
Presence of oesophageal varices	48 (77)
TIPS, n (%)	25 (40)
Scores
Child class, n
A/B/C	2/36/24
Child score, mean ± SD	9.2 ± 2.0
MELD, mean ± SD	16.8 ± 6.4
Total number of HE events occurred in hospitalization or requiring hospitalization, n (%)
0	1 (2)
1	16 (26)
2	17 (27)
> 2	28 (45)
The highest West Haven grade1, n (%)
1	6 (10)
2	20 (32)
3	24 (39)
4	12 (19)
Repeated HE-related hospitalizations (> 1), n (%)	42 (68)
Recurrent HE, n (%)	34 (55)

¹The grade ranges from 0 to 4, with higher scores indicating more severe impairment. HE: Hepatic encephalopathy; TIPS: Transjugular intrahepatic portosystemic shunt; MELD: Model for end-stage liver disease.