The following is a summary of “Prevalence of Hepatobiliary Manifestations in Inflammatory Bowel Disease: A GRADE Assessed Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis of more than 1.7 Million Patients,” published in the March 2024 issue of Gastroenterology by Maal et al.

Inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) is a chronic immune-related condition causing inflammation in the digestive system, potentially impacting other organs like the liver and bile ducts.

Researchers conducted a retrospective study to investigate how frequently various liver problems occur in patients diagnosed with IBD.

They conducted a systematic review and meta-analysis, searching PubMed, Scopus, Web of Science, and Embase (July 20, 2022), using specified keywords for IBD, hepatic manifestations, and study type. Included full texts of English cohort studies on hepatic manifestations in IBD patients. The primary outcome was the overall prevalence of hepatic manifestations. Statistical analysis used random-effect model meta-analysis. Study protocol registered in PROSPERO: CRD42022369595.

The results showed that 4,421 articles were retrieved, and 118 met the inclusion criteria for the final analysis. After analyzing 1,729,128 patients, the overall prevalence of hepatic manifestations was 3.49% (95% CI: 3.31–3.68%; I²: 99.55%). Non-alcoholic fatty liver disease prevalence in 228,216 patients was 26.1% [95% CI: 22.1–30.2%; I²: 99.018%]. Primary sclerosing cholangitis prevalence was 1.67% [95% CI: 1.47–1.88%; I²: 99.10%] among 9642 patients. Biliary stones had a pooled prevalence of 4.1% [95% CI: 3.6–4.7%; I²: 97.43%]. Rare manifestations included autoimmune hepatitis (0.51% [95% CI: 0.26–0.75%]; I²: 85.36%) and portal vein thrombosis (0.21% [95% CI: 0.08–0.33%]; I²: 97.95%).

Investigators concluded the prevalence of various liver complications in patients with IBD, highlighting their significance for managing these extraintestinal manifestations.

Source: academic.oup.com/ecco-jcc/article-abstract/18/3/360/7268290