Electrolyte Imbalance in Decompensated Chronic Liver Disease and Hepatic Encephalopathy and Its Correlation with Disease Severity – A Cross-sectional Study

Background: “Various electrolyte imbalances are associated with chronic liver disease (CLD), and disease severity and outcomes may be influenced by them. These disturbances may be identified for risk stratification and targeted management. Thus, our current analysis aims to assess the distribution of age, gender, and etiology in CLD patients and to evaluate serum sodium, potassium, and calcium levels in relation to disease severity, complications, and outcomes”. Materials and Methods: “A total of 121 CLD patients were evaluated for demographic characteristics, etiological factors, electrolyte levels, disease severity (Child–Pugh classification), complications, and clinical outcomes. Statistical analysis was performed to determine associations between variables”. Results: “The majority of patients were >60 years (40.49%) with a male predominance (57.02%). Hepatitis B was the most common etiology (31.40%), followed by alcoholic liver disease (28.09%) and hepatitis C (24.79%). Hyponatremia (≤130 meq/L) was observed in 48.76% of cases, while most patients had potassium and calcium within normal limits. Nearly half were Child–Pugh Class B, followed by Class C. However, sodium levels were significantly associated with outcome ( P = 0.019874), with higher mortality among those with sodium ≤130 meq/L. Potassium and calcium showed nonsignificant correlation with outcome. Age was not significantly associated with mortality, but gender showed a significant relationship ( P = 0.017268), with males having higher mortality”. Conclusion: “Hyponatremia is a common and clinically significant predictor of poor outcomes in CLD, whereas potassium and calcium levels have limited prognostic value. Elderly males and those with low sodium require closer monitoring and aggressive management to improve survival”.