Background: liver biopsy for years was the only trustable tool for liver cirrhosis evaluation, it is an invasive and painful procedure with considerable rate of complications. Looking for non-invasive markers was mandatory.
Aim: we aimed to evaluate the use of non-invasive markers for fibrosis staging in HCV-infected patients.
Patient and methods: from HCV patients subjected to antiviral therapy within 2015, 42 patients were evaluated with histopathological staging (metavir-staging) after liver biopsy. According to pathological stages, our patients were divided into two groups; group (I) of 18 patients with significant liver fibrosis and group (II) of 24 patients of non-significant liver fibrosis. For all patient age, ALT, AST, GGT, cholesterol, platelets count, bilirubin, prothrombin time and albumin were evaluated and statistically correlated with fibrosis stage.
Results: patients with significant liver fibrosis had higher AST and GGT levels and lower S. Albumin and prothrombin time than patient without significant liver fibrosis. Patients with significant liver fibrosis had positive correlation between AST and GGT level and stage of fibrosis, also had negative correlation between S. Albumin, platelet count and prothrombin time and stage of fibrosis.
Conclusion: non-invasive markers as AST, GGT, serum albumin, platelet count and prothrombin time could be used as markers for diseases severity in cirrhotic patients of HCV.
Recommendation: recent studies must be done for evaluating these markers before and after HCV therapy is highly recommended.