J Korean Soc Radiol.  2011 Jan;64(1):33-38. 10.3348/jksr.2011.64.1.33.

The Analysis of the Causes of Prolonged Hospitalization after Transarterial Chemoembolization in Patients with Unresectable Hepatocellular Carcinoma

• Park SY
• Chang NK
• Kim JK
• Jeong YY

• KMID: 1443579
• DOI: http://doi.org/10.3348/jksr.2011.64.1.33

Abstract

PURPOSE
We wanted to analyze the causes of prolonged hospitalization (over 7 days) after transarterial chemoembolization (TACE) in patients with unresectable Hepatocellular Carcinoma and its related factors.
MATERIALS AND METHODS
We analyzed the total hospital days after patients with unresectable Hepatocellular Carcinoma received transarterial chemoembolization, and these patients were treated during the recent 6 month at our hospital. Two hundred twenty three sessions showed a short term hospital stay (less than 7 days) and 57 sessions showed a prolonged hospital stay (more than 7 days), so a total of 280 sessions were analyzed. The hospital stay less than seven days was set for the control group and this was correlated with the patient's age, gender, the level of bilirubin and albumin, the platelet counts, the AST/ALT ratio, the a-FT, the presence of portal vein thrombosis and ascites, several scoring systems (Child-Pugh, CLIP, and OKUDA score) and the need for additional embolization at the time of the procedure.
RESULTS
Compared with that of the control group, ascites (p=0.004), portal vein thrombosis (p=0.000), a platelet count below the hundred thousand (p=0.012), a Child-Pugh score more than B (p=0.023), a CLIP score more than 2 (p=0.000) and a OKUDA score more than II (p=0.000) showed significant differences.
CONCLUSION
The evaluation of patients' factors would be useful to predict extended post-procedural hospitalization after hepatic chemoembolisation.

MeSH Terms

Ascites
Bilirubin
Carcinoma, Hepatocellular
Chemoembolization, Therapeutic
Hospitalization
Humans
Length of Stay
Liver Neoplasms
Platelet Count
Portal Vein
Prognosis
Thrombosis
Bilirubin

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