Ethnic Differences in Cirrhosis of the Liver in a British City: Alcoholic Cirrhosis in South Asian Men

AIMS AND METHODS: We studied the ethnic origin of cirrhotic patients retrospectively over the 14-year period 1987-2000 and compared the ethnic make-up of the cirrhotic patients with the ethnic make-up of the local catchment population. RESULTS AND CONCLUSIONS: Of 381 cirrhotics, 64.1% were white, 29.1% South Asian, 4.7% Afro-Caribbeans and 2.1% other races. These proportions were different from those of the local community in that South Asians were over-represented and Afro-Caribbeans were under-represented. Alcohol was the commonest cause of cirrhosis (60.9%) and South Asian non-Moslem males with alcoholic cirrhosis were over-represented and were younger at diagnosis than white alcoholic cirrhotics.