1 September 1988

Joseph N. Benoit, D. Neil Granger – 1 September 1988 – Catecholamines, which are elevated during alcohol withdrawal, can alter hepatic blood flow and increase hepatic oxygen consumption. We hypothesized that, in the withdrawal state, hepatic oxygen consumption and delivery could be altered in relation to an increased sympathetic activity. Thirteen chronic alcoholics were studied 34–72 h after withdrawal and 10 days later (control period) using conventional hemodynamic methods.

Pei‐Jer Chen, Ding‐Shinn Chen, Chiou‐Rong Chen, Yu‐Ying Chen, Hsu‐Mei Hsu Chen, Ming‐Yang Lai, Juei‐Low Sung – 1 September 1988 – We examined the prevalence of serum anti‐δ antibody among 769 intravenous drug abusers in Taiwan. δ infection was found extremely common in the HBsAg‐positive carriers with drug abuse, because 128 (85%) of 151 carriers were positive for anti‐δ. However, most of antibody titers were low (<1:5,000). By molecular hybridization, δ RNA genomes were detectable in only five (4%) of 128 asymptomatic carriers positive for anti‐δ.

Giulio Marchesini, Vincenzo Bua, Alessandra Brunori, Giampaolo Bianchi, Paolo Pisi, Andrea Fabbri, Marco Zoli, Emilio Pisi – 1 September 1988 – The galactose elimination capacity, a measure of the functional liver cell mass, and liver volume were measured in 50 normal subjects of five different age groups (<50, 51 to 60, 61 to 70, 71 to 80 and >81 years). The volume of the liver was evaluated by ultrasonography. All subjects had normal routine liver function tests and no history of liver disease.

Bernard Guigui, Sylvain Perrot, Jean Pierre Berry, Jocelyne Fleury‐Feith, Nadine Martin, Jean Michel Métreau, Daniel Dhumeaux, Elie Serge Zafrani – 1 September 1988 – In order to study the relationship between amiodarone‐induced hepatic phospholipidosis and liver disease, liver biopsies obtained from 13 patients treated with amiodarone for 4 months to 15 years were investigated by light and electron microscopy. Light microscopy showed pseudoalcoholic liver lesions that were probably related to amiodarone in four cases, various alterations (i.e.

Anna S. F. Lok, Ching‐Lung Lai – 1 September 1988 – Fifty‐one asymptomatic Chinese hepatitis B surface antigen (HBsAg) carrier children (34 boys, 17 girls), age 1 to 15 years (median: 10 years), were prospectively followed for up to 4 years (median: 30 months) to determine the natural evolution of clinical, biochemical and virological features during the early phase of chronic hepatitis B virus infection.

Hyo‐Suk Lee, M. S. Rajagopalan, Girish N. Vyas – 1 September 1988 – This study was performed to determine the relationship of the activation of ras and c‐myc oncogenes in human hepatocellular carcinoma to the hepatitis B virus gene expression or the presence of hepatitis B virus DNA/RNA at the cellular level. This was done using immunocytochemical analysis with two different antibodies on serial sections.

Robert W. Schrier, Vicente Arroyo, Mauro Bernardi, Murray Epstein, Jens H. Henriksen, Joan Rodés – 1 September 1988 – Renal sodium and water retention and plasma volume expansion have been shown to precede ascites formation in experimental cirrhosis. The classical “underfilling” theory, in which ascites formation causes hypovolemia and initiates secondary renal sodium and water retention, thus seems unlikely.

Ki M. Mak, Charles S. Lieber – 1 September 1988 – Lipocytes and transitional cells in alcoholic liver disease were analyzed by quantitative morphometry in liver biopsy specimens of 17 alcoholic patients. In fatty livers, 93% of the perisinusoidal cells were lipocytes with a volume of lipid droplets occupying more than 20% of the individual cell volume. In fatty livers with perivenular fibrosis, 83% of the cells were lipocytes and 17% were transitional cells with lipid droplets of less than 20% of the cell volume.

Tuvia Gilat – 1 September 1988