Efficacy of L-Ornithine L-Aspartate in Recovery of Patients Suffering from Acute Viral Hepatitis

Abstract

Objective: To assess the efficacy of L-Ornithine L-Aspartate (LOLA) compared with non-LOLA Group in the recovery of patients with acute viral hepatitis.
 Study Design: Quasi-experimental study.
 Place and Duration of Study: Department of General Medicine, Railway Hospital, Rawalpindi Pakistan, from Aug 2020 to Jan 2021.
 Methodology: All patients of either gender, aged >18 years with acute viral hepatitis were included. All patients were divided into two groups. LOLA-Group (Group-A) was given as an infusion over 24 hours at a dosage of 300 grams for three consecutive days. Whereas Group-B had patients to whom L-Ornithine L-Aspartate (LOLA) was not administered. The efficacy was defined as no signs and symptoms in comparison to baseline (clinical improvement), LFTs improved to more than half compared to baseline, and INR was <1.2 at seven days’ follow-up.
 Results: Of 128 patients, the median age was 28 years (20-32). A significant median difference in total bilirubin on the seventh day (p-value 0.044) was observed for the L-Ornithine L-Aspartate (LOLA)-Group. In addition, the efficacy was found to be significantly higher among patients in the Control Group as compared to the patients in the Treatment Group, i.e., 54(84.4%) and 40(62.5%), respectively (p-value 0.005).
 Conclusion: This study showed that the outcome of L-Ornithine L-Aspartate (LOLA) is not very effective in managing patients with acute viral hepatitis.