Association Between Liver Dysfunction Markers and Mortality in Heart Failure: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis

作者：Ali Salman, Ali Irshad, Hamza Chughtai, Mark A. Atkinson, Muhammad Arslan Riaz · 发表于：Cureus · 年份：2026 · DOI：10.7759/cureus.106412 · 研究领域：Liver Disease and Transplantation、Liver Disease Diagnosis and Treatment、Heart Failure Treatment and Management

Heart failure (HF) is a major cause of morbidity and mortality worldwide and is frequently associated with dysfunction of other organs, including the liver. Hepatic congestion and impaired perfusion from cardiac dysfunction may lead to liver injury, described as cardiohepatic syndrome. Studies suggest that liver dysfunction markers, such as the Model for End-Stage Liver Disease (MELD) and MELD excluding international normalized ratio (MELD-XI) scores, may serve as prognostic indicators in HF patients. This systematic review and meta-analysis evaluated the relationship between liver dysfunction markers and mortality outcomes in HF patients. A systematic literature search was conducted. Studies evaluating the association between liver dysfunction markers (MELD or MELD-XI scores) and mortality outcomes in adult HF patients were included. Hazard ratios (HRs) with 95% confidence intervals (CIs) were pooled using the generic inverse variance method with a random-effects model in Review Manager (RevMan) version 5.4 (The Cochrane Collaboration, Copenhagen, Denmark). Subgroup analyses were performed by liver dysfunction marker type and HF phenotype. The primary outcome was all-cause mortality. Nine studies comprising over 32,000 HF patients were included. Elevated liver dysfunction markers were significantly associated with increased mortality risk (pooled HR = 1.12, 95% CI 1.06-1.18). Substantial heterogeneity was observed (I² = 91%). Subgroup analysis showed significant associations...