Corticosteroids in Alcoholic Hepatitis

Inclusion Criteria

• •1. Clinical syndrome of alcoholic hepatitis:
• •recent jaudice or in recent aggravation (\< 3 months) serum bilirubin \> 5 mg/dL history of excess alcohol abuse (\> 40g/day)
• •2. Alcoholic hepatitis proven by a liver biopsy (histological criteria of alcoholic hepatitis defined according to EASL clinical practice guidelines : steatosis, hepatocyte ballooning, and an inflammatory infiltrate with PMNs). The results of the liver biopsy are not mandatory for inclusion. However, the biopsy must be planned at the latest on day 1. When the results become available and do not confirm alcoholic hepatitis, the patient must discontinue the study.
• •3. Spontaneous liver function improvement, defined by a decrease in serum bilirubin level \> 10% between admission and day 5-10 after admission
• •4. less than 2 weeks since admission to hospital
• •5. Maddrey discriminant function\* greater than or equal to 32
• •6. Subjects must voluntarily sign and date an informed consent form, approved by an Institutional Review Board (IRB)/Independent Ethics Committee (IEC) prior to the initiation of any screening or study-specific procedures.
• •7. Subjects must be able to understand and adhere to the study visit schedule and all other protocol requirements.
• •Patients with significant hepatic encephalopathy are not excluded from participation to the trial. In this case, the patient should be accompanied by a legal representative that will decide participation in the clinical study and sign ICF.