The Impact of a Dietary Fiber Enriched Diet on the Outcome of Patients with Liver Cirrhosis

The disease course of liver cirrhosis is associated with a progressing dysbiosis of the intestinal microbiome and systemic inflammation, that leads to the development of cirrhosis-associated immune dysfunction (CAID). In healthy individuals, the microbiome uses orally incorporated dietary fibers for the production of short-chain-fatty-acids (SCFA). One of these physiological short-chain-fatty acids is propionate. SCFA´s are essential for a maintained integrity of the intestinal barrier and promote anti-inflammatory effects. Due to a reduction of symbiotic gut bacteria and an elevated number of potentially pathogenic microbes in cirrhosis, diminished levels of SCFA can be observed in this group of patients. Consequently, the permeability of the gut barrier increases and a bacterial translocation results. This translocation is a main driver of systemic inflammation and is linked to a higher likelihood for infections, such as spontaneous bacterial peritonitis (SBP). Furthermore, systemic inflammation promotes the degradation of skeleton muscles (sarcopenia) and frailty. Both are associated with a poor prognosis in cirrhosis. However, the impact of an adapted diet, that intends to normalize the intestinal SCFA-levels, on the clinical outcome of patients with advanced liver disease, needs to be further evaluated. Therefore, the included patients receive dietary counseling, supplemented with propionate, that functions as fiber-surrogate. The dietary-intervention will last for a period of two months.