An analysis on the treatment effect of rifaximin on liver failure and its complications

Abstract

Abstract: Objective To investigate the treatment effect of rifaximin on liver failure (LF) and its complications. Methods The clinical data of 75 patients with liver failure treated at the Third People's Hospital of Nantong City from January 2020 to October 2022 were retrospectively analyzed. On the basis of comprehensive medical treatment and partial artificial liver support, patients were divided into a rifaximin group and a control group according to the presence or absence of rifaximin treatment. The patients in rifaximin group were given rifaximin 400 mg three times daily for 3 months on top of the treatment of control group. The occurrence of complications (i.e., infection, hepatic encephalopathy, ascites) at the time of admission and the improvement of complications during the follow-up period were recorded in both groups; Kaplan-Meier survival curves were plotted to compare the 90-day survival rates of the two groups according to the survival status of patients at 90 days of follow-up. Methods There were no statistically significant differences in age, sex, artificial liver, Child-Turcotte-Pugh (CTP) score and Model for End-Stage Liver Disease (MELD) score between the two groups (P>0.05); after 3 months of regular treatment, the rate of improvement of infection was higher in the rifaximin group than in the control group (77.8% vs. 44.4%, P=0.020), and the rate of improvement of hepatic encephalopathy (HE) was higher than that in the (88.9% vs. 37.5%, P=0.013) and ascites (62.5% vs. 31.2%, P=0.038), all statistically significant (P<0.05); Kaplan-Meier analysis showed that the 90-day survival rate of patients with liver failure in the rifaximin group [36.0% (9/25)] was higher than that in the control group [16.0% (8/50)] (P<0.05). Conclusion In patients with liver failure, rifaximin treatment significantly improved the complications of infection, Hepatic Encephalopathy (HE), and ascites, and helped prolong the survival of patients, demonstrating the feasibility of rifaximin in the treatment of liver failure and its complications.

Key words: Rifaximin, Liver failure, Complications, Intestinal microbiota, Efficacy

ZHANG Li, BIAN Zhao-lian, TIAN Li-jun, LIU Yi-cun, CHEN Wei-jie, XUE Hong. An analysis on the treatment effect of rifaximin on liver failure and its complications[J]. Chinese Hepatolgy, 2025, 30(1): 37-41.

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