Hajime Sumi, Osamu Yokosuka, Naohiko Seki, Makoto Arai, Fumio Imazeki, Tomoko Kurihara, Tatsuo Kanda, Kenichi Fukai, Masaki Kato, Hiromitsu Saisho – 30 December 2003 – To investigate the hepatitis B virus (HBV) genotype‐related differences in the progression of liver disease, 585 patients with chronic HBV infection including 258 with histologically verified chronic liver disease (CLD) and 74 with hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) were examined.

Raquel Abecasis, David Kravetz, Eduardo Fassio, Beatriz Ameigeiras, Daniel Garcia, Rogelio Isla, Graciela Landeira, Nora Dominguez, Gustavo Romero, Julio Argonz, Ruben Terg – 30 December 2003 – Treatment with β‐blockers fails to decrease portal pressure in nearly 40% of cirrhotic patients. Recent studies have suggested that treatment with spironolactone reduces pressure and flow in the portal and variceal systems. This trial was designed to assess if nadolol plus spironolactone is more effective than nadolol alone to prevent the first variceal bleeding.

Vicente Arroyo, Wladimiro Jiménez – 30 December 2003

Philip Rosenthal – 30 December 2003 – Hepatitis A is a major public health problem in the United States and other developed countries, largely because decreased natural immunity allows for increased susceptibility.

Geetanjali Chander, Mark S. Sulkowski, Mollie W. Jenckes, Michael S. Torbenson, H. Franklin Herlong, Eric B. Bass, Kelly A. Gebo – 30 December 2003 – This systematic review addressed 3 issues regarding current treatments for chronic hepatitis C: (1) efficacy and safety in treatment‐naive patients; (2) efficacy and safety in selected subgroups of patients; and (3) effects on long‐term clinical outcomes. Electronic databases were searched for articles from January 1996 to March 2002.

Daniel Y. Hung, Ping Chang, Kee Cheung, Clay Winterford, Michael S. Roberts – 30 December 2003 – Four animal models were used to quantitatively evaluate hepatic alterations in this study: (1) a carbon tetrachloride control group (phenobarbital treatment only), (2) a CCl4‐treated group (phenobarbital with CCl4 treatment), (3) an alcohol‐treated group (liquid diet with alcohol treatment), and (4) a pair‐fed alcohol control group (liquid diet only). At the end of induction, single‐pass perfused livers were used to conduct multiple indicator dilution (MID) studies.

Jean‐Michel Pawlotsky – 30 December 2003 – Four virological markers of hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection are used clinically for management of patients with hepatitis C, namely the HCV genotype, HCV RNA, HCV core antigen, and antibody to HCV (anti‐HCV). The diagnosis of acute and chronic hepatitis C is based on both anti‐HCV detection using enzyme immunoassays (EIA) and HCV RNA detection using a sensitive molecular biology‐based technique.

Leonard B. Seeff – 30 December 2003 – Much controversy surrounds the issue of the natural history of hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection. Many authorities view the disease as inexorably progressive with a high probability of advancing over time to cirrhosis and occasionally hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) and, therefore, likely to be responsible for causing death.

Norah A. Terrault – 30 December 2003 – The accumulated evidence indicates that hepatitis C virus (HCV) can be transmitted by sexual contact but much less efficiently than other sexually transmitted viruses, including hepatitis B virus and human immunodeficiency virus (HIV). However, because sex is such a common behavior and the reservoir of HCV‐infected individuals is sizable, sexual transmission of HCV likely contributes to the total burden of infection in the United States. Risk of HCV transmission by sexual contact differs by the type of sexual relationship.

Pilar Cejudo‐Martín, Manuel Morales‐Ruiz, Josefa Ros, Miguel Navasa, Guillermo Fernández‐Varo, Josep Fuster, Francisca Rivera, Vicente Arroyo, Juan Rodés, Wladimiro Jiménez – 30 December 2003 – The aim of the investigation was to assess whether hypoxia induces the production of endogenous vasoactive peptides in macrophages of cirrhotic patients with ascites because low tissue oxygenation is a relatively frequent event in these patients.