QTc interval prolongation in the patients with primary biliary cholangitis

Background: The QT interval prolongation was associated with fatal arrhythmias and cardiac death. However, there were not adequate data to clarify the situation of QT interval prolongation in primary biliary cholangitis (PBC) patients. The aim of this study was to clarify the rate and the associated risk factors of corrected QT (QTc) interval prolongation in PBC patients. Methods: From January 2016 to December 2020, PBC patients were retrospectively enrolled. The rate of QTc interval prolongation was surveyed and the associated risk factors were clarified by univariate and multivariate analyses. Results: Among the 198 PBC patients, 25.3% (50/198) had the QTc interval prolongation. The proportion of cardiac electrophysiological abnormalities was higher in the patients with QTc interval prolongation compared with those without QTc interval prolongation (12.0% vs. 6.8%), although there was no statistic difference. The univariate analysis showed that age, Child-Pugh classification, creatinine, international normalized ratio (INR) and platelet (PLT) were associated with QTc interval prolongation in the PBC patients. The multivariate analysis further showed only age (P = 0.022) and Child-Pugh classification (P = 0.009) were the associated risk factors. It had the highest risk of QTc interval prolongation (as high as 60.0%) in the patients who were more than 62 years old and with Child-Pugh C. Conclusion: The QTc interval prolongation was frequent in PBC patients, especially in those more than 62 years old and with Child-Pugh C.