Heart drug may worsen advanced liver disease – major trial underway
NCT ID NCT07652203
First seen Jun 27, 2026 · Last updated Sep 16, 2026 · Updated 2 times
Summary
This study looks at whether propranolol, a drug often used for high blood pressure, helps or harms people with advanced cirrhosis (severe liver scarring). The trial will include 466 adults with a MELD score over 9, meaning their liver disease is fairly advanced. Researchers will compare those who take propranolol to those who do not, tracking how long it takes for liver complications to get worse.
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Study facts
What this study's own registry entry says, in plain language.
- Phase
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Not a phased trial
Phase numbers describe drug development. The registry uses this when they do not apply, as it does for trials of devices, procedures or behaviour changes, and for observational studies.
- Participants
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About 466 people
The number the study aims to enrol. It can still change while the study runs.
- Expected to start
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Sep 2026
An estimate. Start dates often move.
- Expected to finish
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Jul 2028
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 years and older
- 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: * patients' age ≥18 years; * patients with a definitive diagnosis of liver cirrhosis; * patients with a MELD score of \>9; * patients with a history of decompensation or those who are experiencing their first decompensation, such as ascites, variceal bleeding, or hepatic encephalopathy (HE); * patients' informed consents. Exclusion Criteria: * patients without a definite indication for NSBBs; * patients with an absolute contraindication of NSBBs (severe bronchospasm, asthma, severe psychosis, high-degree atrioventricular block, etc.); * patients with hypersensitivity to NSBBs; * patients who had been treated with NSBBs before 2 weeks of enrollment; * patients with occlusive portal vein thrombosis; * patients who had undergone liver transplantation; * patients who had undergone transjugular intrahepatic portosystemic shunt (TIPS); * patients with a definitive diagnosis of hepatocellular carcinoma; * patients with an estimated life time of \<12 months due to the presence of any comorbidities; * patients who are currently pregnant or breast-feeding.
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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
ClinicalTrials.gov lists the study team's own contact details, including names and phone numbers. We don't republish those.
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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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Department of Gastroenterology, General Hospital of Northern Theater Command (formerly called General Hospital of Shenyang Military Area)
Shenyang, Liaoning, China
More trials for these conditions
Other studies related to the condition(s) this trial covers.
- Sound waves may replace the needle in liver scarring tests
- Ultrasound may replace invasive test for dangerous liver complication
- Could a wearable zapper quiet cirrhosis pain without drugs?
- A needle through the gut could replace the standard liver pressure test
- Can two experimental drugs be used safely in people with cirrhosis?
- Can bedside ultrasound guide fluid treatment for cirrhosis patients?