Associated vitamin D deficiency is a risk factor for the complication of HCV-related liver cirrhosis including hepatic encephalopathy and spontaneous bacterial peritonitis.

The influence of vitamin D, 25-hydroxyvitamin D (25(OH)D), deficiency on hepatitis C virus (HCV)-related cirrhosis had been poorly elucidated especially in patients with hepatic encephalopathy (HE) and spontaneous bacterial peritonitis (SBP). We aimed to investigate the association between vitamin D deficiency and the risk of SBP or HE, including the mortality rate. Serum 25(OH)D levels were prospectively determined in 135 patients. Of them, 45 patients had complications with HE and 45 patients had complications with SBP; 45 cirrhotic patients without complication served as the control group. Vitamin D deficiency was defined as 25(OH)D levels < 20 ng/ml. Receiver operating characteristic (ROC) and Kaplan-Meier method with log-rank test were used in our statistical analysis. Predictors of survival were determined using Cox regression analysis. Serum 25(OH)D levels were significantly (P < 0.05) lower in the HE and SBP groups than in the control group (6.81 ± 2.75, 7.15 ± 2.10, 16.28 ± 6.60, respectively). Moreover, serum 25(OH)D levels were significantly lower in the high HE grade than in the low grade (P < 0.001). Regarding the SBP group, classic SBP was associated with lower 25(OH)D levels compared to other types (P < 0.001). ROC curve revealed that lower 25(OH)D levels less than 7.1 ng/ml and 6.6 ng/ml could predict the mortality in SBP and HE patients, respectively, with high sensitivity and specificity. Serum 25(OH)D levels < 5 ng/ml were associated with significant higher mortality rate (HR = 2.76, P = 0.001). Lower 25(OH)D levels were associated with HE and SBP in cirrhotic patients. In addition, it may be considered a prognostic parameter for the severity of liver cirrhosis.