Open Access

Prolonged use of pentoxifylline increases the life expectancy of patients with compensated cirrhosis: A 20‑year retrospective study

  • Authors:
    • Miguel Ángel Jiménez‑Luévano
    • Ana Emilia Jiménez‑Partida
    • Erick Sierra‑Díaz
    • Eduardo Orozco‑Alonso
    • Martha Villaseñor‑García
    • Alejandro Bravo‑Hernández
    • Jesús Alejandro Gutiérrez‑Ortíz
    • Alejandro Bravo‑Cuellar
    • Georgina Hernández‑Flores
  • View Affiliations

  • Published online on: September 23, 2024     https://doi.org/10.3892/br.2024.1861
  • Article Number: 173
  • Copyright: © Jiménez‑Luévano et al. This is an open access article distributed under the terms of Creative Commons Attribution License.

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Abstract

Liver cirrhosis is a pathology of varied etiology with a high prevalence and mortality, resulting in >1 million mortalities per year. Patients with liver cirrhosis typically have a survival time of 12 years following diagnosis. The treatment for this disease is directed at the complications of cirrhosis; however, to the best of our knowledge, the long‑term management of patients with cirrhosis has been scarcely studied. Pentoxifylline (PTX) is a non‑selective phosphodiesterase inhibitor with rheological activity and antioxidant, anti‑inflammatory and antifibrotic properties. PTX has been used in the treatment of peripheral arterial disease, inflammatory liver diseases and hepatocellular carcinoma with encouraging results. The aim of the present study was to evaluate the effect of PTX use on the survival of patients with compensated cirrhosis. For this purpose, a cross‑sectional study was performed at the Gastroenterology and Hepatitis C Department of Dr. Valentín Gómez Farias Hospital (Institute for Security and Social Services for State Workers, Zapopan, Mexico) from June, 1996 to December, 2019. The follow‑up time for these patients was 22.6 years (up to the end of the study period). In the present study, 326 patient files were analyzed and 118 patients with the disease were identified, 81 of whom (68.64%) died within 12 years after diagnosis. Of the included patients, 26 received PTX combined with PEG IFN‑α‑2a plus ribavirin, and 11 received PTX plus propranolol, with a median treatment duration of 20.6±0.8 years. Furthermore, 16 patients (43%) did not develop co‑morbidities within this time, and the transition to decompensated cirrhosis was 16.6 years, with a survival time of 20 years. Therefore, the results of the present study suggest that PTX may improve the long‑term survival of patients with compensated cirrhosis, rendering PTX a candidate for repurposing in the treatment of hepatic cirrhosis.
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December-2024
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Spandidos Publications style
Jiménez‑Luévano MÁ, Jiménez‑Partida AE, Sierra‑Díaz E, Orozco‑Alonso E, Villaseñor‑García M, Bravo‑Hernández A, Gutiérrez‑Ortíz JA, Bravo‑Cuellar A and Hernández‑Flores G: Prolonged use of pentoxifylline increases the life expectancy of patients with compensated cirrhosis: A 20‑year retrospective study. Biomed Rep 21: 173, 2024.
APA
Jiménez‑Luévano, M.Á., Jiménez‑Partida, A.E., Sierra‑Díaz, E., Orozco‑Alonso, E., Villaseñor‑García, M., Bravo‑Hernández, A. ... Hernández‑Flores, G. (2024). Prolonged use of pentoxifylline increases the life expectancy of patients with compensated cirrhosis: A 20‑year retrospective study. Biomedical Reports, 21, 173. https://doi.org/10.3892/br.2024.1861
MLA
Jiménez‑Luévano, M. Á., Jiménez‑Partida, A. E., Sierra‑Díaz, E., Orozco‑Alonso, E., Villaseñor‑García, M., Bravo‑Hernández, A., Gutiérrez‑Ortíz, J. A., Bravo‑Cuellar, A., Hernández‑Flores, G."Prolonged use of pentoxifylline increases the life expectancy of patients with compensated cirrhosis: A 20‑year retrospective study". Biomedical Reports 21.6 (2024): 173.
Chicago
Jiménez‑Luévano, M. Á., Jiménez‑Partida, A. E., Sierra‑Díaz, E., Orozco‑Alonso, E., Villaseñor‑García, M., Bravo‑Hernández, A., Gutiérrez‑Ortíz, J. A., Bravo‑Cuellar, A., Hernández‑Flores, G."Prolonged use of pentoxifylline increases the life expectancy of patients with compensated cirrhosis: A 20‑year retrospective study". Biomedical Reports 21, no. 6 (2024): 173. https://doi.org/10.3892/br.2024.1861