Comment on ‘Ascitic Fluid Analysis in the Differential Diagnosis of Ascites: Focus on Cirrhotic Ascites’

First, I would like to congratulate the authors, Huang LL, Xia HH and Zhu SL, on the overall great work done in preparing the review article ‘Ascitic Fluid Analysis in the Differential Diagnosis of Ascites: Focus on Cirrhotic Ascites’. However, there seems to be an error in the description of diagnosis of spontaneous bacterial peritonitis (SBP). The authors state “SBP is defined by the presence of neutrophil cells greater than or equal to 250/mL or a positive bacterial culture in the ascitic fluid without evidence of an abdominal source.” The issue here is the fact that the authors make the presence of neutrophil cells greater than or equal to 250/mL for diagnoses of SBP an option (by using the conjunction term ‘or’) and not a condition, whereas it is proven by evidence in the literature that it is a prerequisite. Citation of this article: Ahmed F. Comment on ‘ascitic fluid analysis in the differential diagnosis of ascites: focus on cirrhotic ascites’. J Clin Transl Hepatol 2017;5(2):184. doi: 10.14218/JCTH.2017.00026.