Yvette Mukaneza, Ph.D.

Introduction: Hepatic Encephalopathy (HE) is a severe neuropsychiatric syndrome associated with liver failure, ranging from covert HE, with subclinical impairments, to overt HE, with evident symptoms that require hospitalization. HE can be prevented, but prophylaxis would be justified and cost-effective only for patients at risk. Efficient and practical screening models are needed to detect these patients. EncephalApp, smartphone-based Stroop test is a valid method to screen for covert HE, one of the main risk factors. • Objective: Identify patients who are at high risk of developing overt hepatic encephalopathy within one year. • Hypothesis: The risk of developing an overt HE episode within 1 year and mortality will be higher in patients with covert HE and with a high risk of decompensation due to cirrhosis measured by ALBI-FIB4 score. Presence of ascites, high risk of gastrointestinal bleeding and high levels of inflammation biomarkers associated with covert HE at the screening are also expected to predict the outcomes. • Methods: For a multicentric longitudinal prospective study, 25 to 30 cirrhotic patients will be selected from 7 centers in Canada: Montreal (2 centers), Toronto, Ottawa, Calgary, Vancouver and Edmonton. Covert HE will be diagnosed with the Stroop test and blood samples will be collected at the screening and at the hospitalizations. Patients will be followed up for 1 year with phone calls every 3 months and medical records will be checked to identify HE- related hospitalizations and mortality. Statistical analysis will be performed to study the correlation between screening test results and patient outcomes. • Conclusion: The expected results can provide important information for identifying patients at high risk of developing overt HE within 1 year, by diagnosing covert HE and measuring biomarkers linked to the HE risk pathway. This data can help to justify prophylaxis, early treatment and prevention of episodes, which would have a great impact on the patient's quality of life, cost of health treatments and decrease in mortality.