One world one pandemic many guidelines: management of liver diseases during COVID-19

摘要

Severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) is responsible for the current global pandemic of COVID-19, which is associated with significant morbidity and mortality. As of 26 April 2020, it has infected over three million people worldwide and caused more than 200 000 deaths. Chronic liver diseases from HCV, HBV, alcoholism or non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) represent a major disease burden in the world. Around 1.5 billion people have chronic liver diseases worldwide, and it causes around two million deaths per year. While self-resolving elevations of transaminases are reported in 15%–54% of patients with COVID-19, those with more severe disease experience worse liver injury. An open international registry, SECURE-Cirrhosis, is reporting a mortality rate of 40% among the 118 patients with cirrhosis. Thus, patients with chronic liver disease represent a vulnerable population who are at higher risk of acquiring COVID-19 and suffering from its complications.