Can amino acid shakes help liver patients regain muscle?
NCT ID NCT06121479
First seen Jun 27, 2026 · Last updated Jun 27, 2026
Summary
This study tests whether taking branched-chain amino acid (BCAA) supplements twice daily for 12 weeks can improve muscle thickness and nutrition in people with decompensated cirrhosis and ascites (fluid in the belly). Thirty adults with low albumin levels will receive the supplement and undergo measurements of muscle, strength, and blood markers. The goal is to see if BCAA can counteract muscle wasting common in advanced liver disease.
What this could mean
Our plain-language read of the trial. This is informational only, not medical advice or a prediction.
- Active substance
- branched-chain amino acids (BCAA)
- What this could lead to
- If successful, this could show that BCAA supplements help improve muscle mass and nutrition in people with advanced liver disease and fluid buildup.
- What could go wrong
- This is a small pilot study with only 30 participants, so results may not apply to everyone. It focuses on short-term nutritional changes, not long-term survival or liver function.
This is an AI summary of the original study and may miss details. Read our disclaimer.
Study facts
What this study's own registry entry says, in plain language.
- Phase
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Phase 3
Large-scale testing in a bigger group. Usually the last step before a treatment can be approved.
- Participants
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About 30 people
The number the study aims to enrol. It can still change while the study runs.
- Started
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Nov 2023
- Expected to finish
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Dec 2025
An estimate. End dates often move.
- Lead sponsor
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Other sponsor
The registry's catch-all category, for sponsors it does not file as a company, a government agency, or a research network.
Who can take part
This study's own entry requirements. Only the study team can say for certain whether you qualify.
- Ages
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18 to 85 years
- Sex
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Anyone
- Healthy volunteers
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Not accepted
This study is not open to healthy volunteers. The entry requirements below say who it is open to.
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Copied word for word from the study's registry entry, so the wording is the study team's rather than ours.
Inclusion Criteria: 1. Cirrhotic patients of all etiology with aged of 18-85 years 2. Clinically detectable ascites 3. Serum albumin \< 3 g/dL Exclusion Criteria: 1. Patients with hepatocellular carcinoma outside the Milan criteria. 2. Patients with history of gastrointestinal bleeding and spontaneous bacterial peritonitis (SBP) within the last 3 months. 3. Patients with acute on chronic liver failure (ACLF). 4. Patients with uncontrollable chronic comorbidities, including chronic heart failure in NYHA stages 3-4, end stage kidney disease requiring dialysis, and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease Gold D. 5 .Patients who have undergone liver or kidney transplant. 6. Patients with Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV). 7. Pregnant or lactating patients. 8. Patients who have undergone large volume paracentesis (\>5 liters) with intravenous albumin administration on the day of study enrollment. 9. Patients with a history of above-knee amputation surgery. 10. Patients with a history of receiving intravenous albumin administration every 1-2 weeks within the last one month.
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Conditions
The condition(s) this trial relates to.
As listed by the trial registrant
The condition terms exactly as the trial's registrant entered them.
How to take part
Only the study team decides who joins. These are the ways to reach them.
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The places running it
1 site. The list below names each one and where it is.
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The official record
The full official record for this study. This one lists no contact details, but it is the first place any would appear.
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A doctor treating you
A doctor who knows your case can contact a study site on your behalf, and can tell you whether this study is worth pursuing at all.
Contacts and locations
Locations
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Division of Gastroenterology, Department of Medicine, Faculty of Medicine Siriraj Hospital, Mahidol University, Bangkok, Thailand
Bangkok, Bangkok, 10700, Thailand
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