ABSTRACT
Background: A serious and common consequence in cirrhotic liver patient is spontaneous bacterial peritonitis (SBP),
it means infection of ascitic fluid with unknown operationally treatable etiology in the abdomen. The body contains
one of the most prevalent trace elements, zinc (Zn), which is important for growth and development.
Objective: To investigate the relationship between low serum Zn levels and SBP development in HCV-related
cirrhotic liver patients.
Patients and Methods: The study was done on fifty patients with HCV related cirrhotic liver suffering from ascites.
Half of them without SBP, classified as group (A), and the other half with SBP on the basis of ascitic fluid
polymorphonuclear (PMN) leukocytic count of ≥250 cells/μL in the absence of subsequent peritonitis, no matter the
culture results of the ascitic fluid, classified as group (B).
Results: The levels of C-reactive protein (CRP), platelet count, and white blood cells (WBCs) were significantly
different between the two research groups (P |
