Clinical features of 56 patients with primary biliary cirrhosis

Objective To summarize the clinical characteristics of primary biliary cirrhosis(PBC) and the experience in the diagnosis and treatment of the disease.Methods A total of 56 PBC patients,who were treated in our hospital from Jun.2007 to Jun.2012,were enrolled in the study.Clinical data including clinical manifestations,biochemical indicators,pathological findings,imaging findings and the response to ursodeoxycholic acid(UDCA) therapy were analyzed retrospectively.Results The ratio of male to female was 1:4.09.The most common symptoms were fatigue,pruritus,anorexia and jaundice.The levels of ALP and GGT of all the patients were elevated.Fifty patients(89.29%) were positive for antimitochondrial antibody(AMA)/AMA-M2.Of 26 patients undergoing liver biopsy,69.23% were in early stage(stagesⅠ-Ⅱ) and 30.77% in advanced stage(stages Ⅲ-Ⅳ).After 3-6 months of UDCA therapy,liver function was improved significantly in all the patients.Conclusions PBC most frequently affects middleaged women,and is characterized by elevated levels of ALP and GGT and AMA/AMA-M2 positive.Liver biopsy is useful for confirming the diagnosis and differentiating histopathological stages.The conventional therapy of protecting liver function plus UDCA therapy achieves definite efficacy.