Fig. 3

Influence of therapeutic plasma exchange on liver-transplant-free survival in the entire patient cohort. Liver-transplant (LTX)-free survival following fulfillment of acute liver failure (ALF) criteria is shown as Kaplan-Meier graphs for patients receiving standard of care (SOC) only and those receiving additional therapeutic plasma exchange (PEX) (A). Cumulative incidence function for LTX and death stratified by chosen therapeutic strategy (SOC vs. PEX) (B) and a multistate comparison of the cumulative incidence of LTX and death (C), are shown demonstrating comparable incidences of LTX and death in patients receiving SOC and PEX. Cumulative incidence function and multistate comparisons visualize the first occurring competing event of LTX or death, respectively. A corresponding multivariate cox-regression with hazard ratios (HR) and 95% confidence intervals (CIs) is shown as a forest plot with corresponding table (D). p-values < 0.05 were considered significant