| ORIGINAL ARTICLE |
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| Year : 2020 | Volume
: 33
| Issue : 3 | Page : 813-818 |
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Study of glycated albumin to glycated hemoglobin ratio as a predictor of esophageal varices bleeding risk
Ehab A Elatty1, Elsayed I Elshayeb1, Mohammed H Badr1, Belal A. E Mohsen Montaser2, Mokhtar S Hewezy3
1 Department of Internal Medicine, Faculty of Medicine, Menoufia University, Menoufia, Egypt
2 Department of Clinical Pathology, Faculty of Medicine, Menoufia University, Menoufia, Egypt
3 Department of Internal Medicine, Al Mahalla El-Kobra General Hospital, Gharbia, Egypt
Correspondence Address:
Mokhtar S Hewezy
Al Mahalla El-Kobra, Gharbia 31951
Egypt
 Source of Support: None, Conflict of Interest: None  | Check |
DOI: 10.4103/mmj.mmj_306_19
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Objectives
To evaluate glycated albumin (GA) to glycated hemoglobin (HbA1c) ratio as a predictor of variceal bleeding in patients with liver cirrhosis.
Background
Variceal hemorrhage is a severe complication of liver cirrhosis and can be a direct cause of bleeding-related death. Therefore, upper endoscopy is considered necessary for all cirrhotic patients to evaluate the risk of variceal bleeding.
Patients and methods
A prospective clinical study was conducted on 100 patients with chronic hepatitis C-related cirrhosis who attended the Gastrointestinal Endoscopy Unit of the Department of Internal Medicine, Menoufia University hospitals, during the period between January 2017 and March 2018. Liver cirrhosis was diagnosed depending upon clinical examination in addition to laboratory and imaging studies. Various indicators for hepatic functions, HbA1c, and GA were measured. GA/HbA1c ratio was measured, and its relationship with the presence and bleeding risk of esophageal varices was analyzed.
Results
The GA/HbA1c ratio in hepatitis C virus (HCV)-positive cirrhotic patients increases with the severity of the esophageal varices. GA/HbA1c ratio may help in discrimination of low-risk from high-risk varices because GA/HbA1c ratio was the most significantly different among all of the other parameters tested; however, this is still doubtful.
Conclusion
Thrombocytopenia and prolonged prothrombin time parameters are associated with an increased risk of variceal bleeding. GA/HbA1c ratio in HCV-positive cirrhotic patients increases with the severity of the esophageal varices. GA/HbA1c ratio may help in discrimination of low-risk from high-risk varices. It is of interest and is not redundant to use the GA/HbA1c ratio to predict esophageal variceal bleeding risk in chronic HCV disease.
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