title: Outcomes in culture positive and culture negative ascitic fluid infection in patients with viral cirrhosis: cohort study.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Ascitic fluid infection (AFI) in cirrhotic patients has a high morbidity and mortality. It has two variants namely, spontaneous bacterial peritonitis (SBP) and culture negative neutrocytic ascites (CNNA). The aim of this study was to determine the outcome in cirrhotic patients with culture positive (SBP) and culture negative neutrocytic ascites.
  
  
  METHODS
  We analyzed 675 consecutive hepatitis B and/or C related cirrhosis patients with ascites admitted in our hospital from November 2005 to December 2007. Of these, 187 patients had AFI; clinical and laboratory parameters of these patients including causes of cirrhosis, Child Turcotte Pugh (CTP) score were recorded.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Out of 187 patients with AFI, 44 (23.5%) had SBP while 143 (76.4%) had CNNA. Hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection was the most common cause of cirrhosis in 139 (74.3%) patients. Patients with SBP had high CTP score as compared to CNNA (12.52 +/- 1.45 vs. 11.44 +/- 1.66); p < 0.001. Platelets count was low in patients with SBP (101 +/- 53 x 10(9)/L) as compared to CNNA (132 +/- 91 x 10(9)/L), p = 0.005. We found a high creatinine (mg/dl) (1.95 +/- 1.0 vs. 1.44 +/- 0.85), (p = 0.003) and high prothrombin time (PT) in seconds (24.8 +/- 6.6 vs. 22.4 +/- 7.2) (p = 0.04) in SBP as compared to CNNA. More patients with SBP (14/44; 31.8%) had blood culture positivity as compare to CNNA (14/143; 9.8%), p = 0.002. Escherichia. Coli was the commonest organism in blood culture in 15/28 (53.5%) patients. SBP group had a higher mortality (11/44; 25%) as compared to CNNA (12/143; 8.4%), p = 0.003. On multiple logistic regression analysis, creatinine >1.1 mg/dl and positive blood culture were the independent predictors of mortality in patients with SBP.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Patients with SBP have a higher mortality than CNNA. Independent predictors of mortality in SBP are raised serum creatinine and a positive blood culture.
authors.affiliation: Medicine Department, Aga Khan University Hospital, Karachi, Pakistan. lubna.kamani@aku.edu
authors.forename: Lubna
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Kamani
authors.forename: Khalid
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Mumtaz
authors.forename: Umair S
authors.initials: US
authors.lastname: Ahmed
authors.forename: Ailia W
authors.initials: AW
authors.lastname: Ali
authors.forename: Wasim
authors.initials: W
authors.lastname: Jafri
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D001201:Ascites / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000382:microbiology*; D001202:Ascitic Fluid / Q000382:microbiology*; D015331:Cohort Studies; D003404:Creatinine / Q000097:blood; D004926:Escherichia coli / Q000472:pathogenicity; D005260:Female; D006509:Hepatitis B / Q000150:complications*; D006526:Hepatitis C / Q000150:complications*; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D019152:Paracentesis; D010538:Peritonitis / Q000382:microbiology*; D011237:Predictive Value of Tests; D011379:Prognosis; D011549:Pseudomonas / Q000472:pathogenicity; D012189:Retrospective Studies; D013210:Staphylococcus / Q000472:pathogenicity; D013296:Streptococcus pneumoniae / Q000472:pathogenicity
chemical_list: D003404:Creatinine