Tsung‐Sheng Su, Wing‐Yiu Lui, Ling‐Huang Lin, Shou‐Hwa Han, Fang‐Ku P'eng – 1 February 1989 – The hepatitis B virus transcripts in human hepatoma and its adjacent nontumorous liver were examined with probes specific to hepatitis B virus surface antigen, core antigen, X region and pre‐S region. The study shows that the patterns of hepatitis B virus transcripts for tumorous tissue and the counterpart in nontumorous liver differ. In most of the tissues examined, the surface antigen gene is transcribed.

David Westaby, Peter C. Hayes, Alexander E. S. Gimson, Rex J. Polson, Roger Williams – 1 February 1989 – In a prospective, randomized clinical trial, immediate injection sclerotherapy was compared with treatment by a combined infusion of vasopressin (0.4 unit per min) and nitroglycerin (40 to 400 μg per min) in 50 consecutive patients with 64 episodes of endoscopy‐proven active variceal hemorrhage. Control of bleeding was assessed over a 12‐hr period following entry into the trial.

Michael A. Gerber, Swan N. Thung – 1 February 1989

Harold O. Conn, Lewis L. Levy – 1 February 1989 – A blind analysis of 56 EEGs with triphasic wave patterns was performed to determine the diagnostic specificity of individual electrographic features. EEG and clinical variables analyzed included longitudinal topography, phase lags, symmetry, background activity, reactivity, longitudinal bipolar phase reversal sites, responses to photic stimulation and mental status at the time of recording.

Jurgen Ludwig, Chung H. Kim, Russell H. Wiesner, Ruud A. F. Krom – 1 February 1989 – A 43‐year‐old man underwent abdominoperineal resection of a rectal adenocarcinoma, and left hepatic lobectomy for a single metastasis. He then received hepatic artery infusions of floxuridine. The tumor did not recur, but sclerosing cholangitis and liver failure developed which necessitated orthotopic liver transplantation. In the hilus of the native liver, obstructive arteriopathy and portal venopathy were found. These lesions probably had been caused by drug‐induced intravascular thrombosis.

Ricardo Mastaï, Bernard Rocheleau, P. ‐Michel Huet – 1 February 1989 – It has recently been reported that the administration of ketanserin, a serotonin antagonist, was associated with a significant reduction in portal pressure both in portal hypertensive rats and cirrhotic patients. However, this beneficial effect on splanchnic hemodynamics was accompanied by a significant reduction in arterial pressure.

1 February 1989

Shiro Oguma, Steven Belle, Thomas E. Starzl, A. Jake Demetris – 1 February 1989 – Conspicuous pathologic features of chronic liver allograft rejection include bile duct loss and chronic obliterative arteriopathy. A quantitative histometric analysis was performed to document the extent of bile duct loss, the size of the “vanished” ducts and the extent of chronic obliterative arteriopathy and to determine whether there was any relationship between chronic obliterative arteriopathy and bile duct loss.

Renee C. Lin, Lawrence Lumeng, Vickie L. Phelps – 1 February 1989 – Effects of chronic ethanol consumption on serum lip–oproteins have been studied in the rat. The serum levels of triglycerides, cholesterol, phospholipids and apolipo‐proteins AI and AIV increased significantly after 1 week of ethanol feeding, and they remained elevated up to 7 weeks of alcohol drinking. By contrast, serum total apolipoprotein E decreased or, sometimes, did not change.

Lawrence I. Deckelbaum – 1 February 1989 – Three cases of hepatic inferior vena cava (IVC) obstruction (two segmental and one membranous) associated with Budd‐Chiari syndrome were successfully treated with percutaneous transluminal angioplasty (PTA) with use of an Nd‐YAG (neodymium‐yttrium, aluminum, garnet) laser. The occluded portions were canalized by advancing a ceramic‐capped delivery system and delivering intermittent laser emissions. The canal was widened by simultaneous inflation of three or four Gruentzig balloon catheters.