Editorial for 'randomized controlled trial assessing the effect of simvastatin in primary biliary cirrhosis'

摘要

Primary biliary cirrhosis (PBC) is a progressive liver disease with orphan status primarily affecting women at a rather low prevalence (1-4). Ursodeoxycholic acid (UDCA) is currently the only approved therapy for PBC (2, 5). The treatment response is assessed by the effects on serum alkaline phosphatase (AP), as patients with an incomplete biochemical response to UDCA (e.g. AP >1.5 x ULN after 1 year) remain at increased risk for progression to cirrhosis and liver-related death (6, 7).