Mini-Mental State Examination in patients with hepatic encephalopathy and liver cirrhosis: a prospective, quantified electroencephalography study

Mini-Mental State Examination (MMSE) is one of the most commonly used methods in the assessment of cognitive mental status. MMSE has been used in hepatology but its usefulness in the evaluation of hepatic encephalopathy (HE) has never been properly assessed. The aim of the study was to investigate the value of MMSE in detection of HE in patients with cirrhosis. One hundred and one consecutive patients with liver cirrhosis underwent neurological examination, MMSE and electroencephalography (EEG). Spectral analysis of EEG was done with calculation of mean dominant frequency (MDF) and relative power of delta, theta, alpha and beta rhythms. Minimal HE was diagnosed in patients with normal neurological status and alterations in spectral EEG. Statistical analysis included Fisher's exact and Anova analysis. Categorical data were compared using Levene's test for equality of variances. Correlation-coefficient analysis was performed by the Pearson's r or Z-test, as needed. Tests performance was assessed by the calculating the area under the ROC curve (AUC) and evaluating its difference from reference area (AUC=0.5). A p value