Correlation of serum liver fibrosis markers with severity of liver dysfunction in liver cirrhosis: a retrospective cross-sectional study.

Hyaluronic acid (HA), laminin (LN), amino-terminal pro-peptide of type III pro-collagen (PIIINP), and collagen IV (CIV) are four major serum markers of liver fibrosis. This retrospective cross-sectional study aimed to evaluate the correlations of the four serum markers with the severity of liver dysfunction in cirrhotic patients. Between January 2013 and June 2014, a total of 228 patients with a clinical diagnosis with liver cirrhosis and without malignancy underwent the tests of HA, LN, PIIINP, and CIV levels. Laboratory data were collected. Child-Pugh and model for the end-stage of liver diseases (MELD) scores were calculated. Of them, 32%, 40%, and 18% had Child-Pugh class A, B, and C, respectively. MELD score was 7.58±0.50. HA (coefficient r: 0.1612, P=0.0203), LN (coefficient r: 0.2445, P=0.0004), and CIV (coefficient r: 0.2361, P=0.0006) levels significantly correlated with Child-Pugh score, but not PIIINP level. Additionally, LN (coefficient r: 0.2588, P=0.0002) and CIV (coefficient r: 0.1795, P=0.0108) levels significantly correlated with MELD score, but not HA or PIIINP level. In conclusions, HA, LN, and CIV levels might be positively associated with the severity of liver dysfunction in cirrhotic patients. However, given a relatively weak correlation between them, our findings should be cautiously interpreted and further validated.