No patients in placebo group presented a clinically relevant decrease in HVPG, while 4 patients (36%) in the simvastatin group reached this endpoint (p=0.045). Considering only patients with severe portal hypertension at baseline (HVPG ≥ 12mmHg, n=13), the decrease was achieved by 50% of them, all patients in simvas-tatin group. The baseline mean AzBF were 501.2 ± 385 mL/ min in placebo group and 532.7 ± 365 mL/min in simvastatin group, and present a decrease of 19% and 38%, respectively, at the end of the protocol (p=0.02). Although both HVPG and AzBF reduced after simvastatin use, the correlation between the methods was weak (r=0,39). Two thirds of the patients were taking nonselective

beta adrenergic blockers and these drugs did not interfere with simvastatin hemodynamic effect. Moderate and severe adverse events did not occur in

simvastatin group. CONCLUSION: selleck chemicals llc Simvastatin seems to be safe in liver cirrhosis and can significantly lower portal pressure. This effect is more evident in patients with severe portal hypertension, precisely the group most in need of prevention of its complications. The correlations between the HVPG and the AzBF is weak probably because the azygos system is only one of several drainage pathways in portal hypertension. These results reinforce the trend of incorporating statins in the therapeutic arsenal of cirrhotic portal hypertension. Disclosures: The following people have nothing to disclose: www.selleckchem.com/products/gsk126.html Priscila P. Flores, Guilherme F. Rezende, Ubiratan Cassano, Monica Soldan BACKGROUND AND AIMS: The increase of intrahepatic availability of nitric oxide induced by statins medchemexpress makes this drugs a potential option for the treatment of portal hypertension. This clinical trial was designed to evaluate the effects of simvastatin on the hepatic venous pressure gradient (HVPG) and on the azygos vein blood flow (AzBF) in cirrhotic patients. METHODS: A prospective, randomized, controlled, triple-blind trial with simvastatin and placebo was conducted, including patients with

cirrhosis and portal hypertension detected by abdominal ultrasound with color Doppler flowmetry or upper digestive endoscopy. Placebo or simvastatin (40 mg) was given daily; HVPG was determined by hepatic vein catheterization and AzBF was measured by color Doppler echoendoscopy (EUS-Cd), both procedures performed at the beginning and after three months of treatment. The main endpoint was a decrease in HVPG of at least 20% from baseline or to ≤ 12 mm Hg after treatment, considered clinically relevant. The correlation between HVPG and AzBF was also tested. RESULTS: Thirty four patients were prospectively enrolled in the study and 22 of them completed the 3 month-protocol. The two groups of treatment were similar at baseline in terms of clinical aspects, liver disease and portal hypertension severity.