Alcoholism and Socioeconomic Status among Patients with Hepatic Encephalopathy in Association with Increased Mortality

Background: Hepatic encephalopathy (HE) is a complex neuropsychiatric disorder indicated by a deterioration in the functioning of hepatocytes. Impaired brain function is observed in advanced alcoholic liver disease particularly manifesting as HE. The pathophysiology of alcohol-related HE remains unclear. Accordingly, this study aimed to assess alcoholism and socioeconomic status of patients with liver disease compared with stages of HE.Methods: This cross-sectional study was conducted on ۶۲ alcoholic patients who have been consuming alcohol for more than ۱۴ years. Patients were recruited based on the assessment of clinical symptoms and diagnosed according to the MELD and Child-Pugh scoring systems.Findings: Descriptive statistics including demographic details and clinical features of patients were classified based on alcoholism and socioeconomic status. Patients belonging to the lower- and middle-income classes were more in number with a mean age of ۴۶.۶۶±۱۰.۲۱ and ۴۷.۱۴±۶.۳۶ years, respectively compared to upper-middle- and upper-income classes. The amount of alcohol intake was ۱۱۶.۵۹±۴۵.۶۰ in the middle class and ۱۱۰.۰±۶۲.۴۵ in the upper class. Conclusion: Increased progression of HE leads to a rise in the mortality rate due to higher consumption of alcohol. HE is a severe complication in alcohol-related liver cirrhosis that contributes to impaired cognitive function in patients.

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Keywords: Alcoholism , Liver disease , Social class , Hepatic encephalopathy , mortality