The Longitudinal Study of Liver Cysts in Patients With Autosomal Dominant Polycystic Kidney Disease and Polycystic Liver Disease

INTRODUCTION: Although polycystic liver disease (PCLD) is one of the extrarenal complications in patients with autosomal dominant polycystic kidney disease (ADPKD), longitudinal changes and the association with total liver volume (TLV) have not been clearly elucidated yet. METHODS: Patients with ADPKD were chosen who underwent computed tomography or magnetic resonance imaging twice or more during August 2003 through December 2015. TLV, each cyst volume, and the proportion of parenchyma were measured. The natural history of liver cysts and the association between TLV and liver cysts were evaluated. To compare with liver cysts in ADPKD patients with PCLD, simple liver cysts in patients without ADPKD were also evaluated. RESULTS: TLV at baseline and its growth rate in all the patients with ADPKD, whose serum creatinine, estimated glomerular filtration rate, and total kidney volume were 1.45 mg/dl (0.76–2.32 mg/dl), 38.5 ml/min per 1.73 m(2) (18.7–57.9 ml/min per 1.73 m(2)), and 1394 ml (773–2861 ml), were 1431 ml (1062–1749 ml) and −0.95%/yr (−3.16 to 4.94%/yr), respectively, in the observation period (median, 1063 days). Neither TLV nor its growth rate was significantly different between ADPKD patients with PCLD and those without PCLD. The growth rate of 79 liver cysts was 39.5%/yr (17.5–80.8%/yr) in PCLD patients with ADPKD. It was significantly larger than that of 60 simple liver cysts in the non-ADPKD group, 11.0%/yr (−2.2 to 33.1%/yr). Moreover, the proportion of parenchyma reduced, whereas that of total cyst volume increased significantly (P = 0.001). DISCUSSION: The reduction of parenchyma was accompanied by the growth of liver cysts during time course in PCLD patients with ADPKD.