Arema A. Pereira, Renuka Bhattacharya, Robert Carithers, Jorge Reyes, James Perkins – 25 May 2012 – Hospitals with the highest readmission rates for high‐cost conditions may be targeted for payment penalties. The primary aim of this study was to determine clinical predictors of 30‐day readmission after discharge for patients undergoing orthotopic liver transplantation (OLT) at the University of Washington from January 2003 to October 2010.

Mehmet Yilmaz, Sami Akbulut, Burak Isik, Cengiz Ara, Fatih Ozdemir, Cemalettin Aydin, Cuneyt Kayaalp, Sezai Yilmaz – 25 May 2012 – In this study, we evaluated the diagnosis, epidemiology, risk factors, and treatment of chylous ascites developing after liver transplantation (LT). Between 2002 and 2011, LT was performed 693 times in 631 patients at our clinic. One‐hundred fifteen of these patients were excluded for reasons such as retransplantation, early postoperative mortality, and insufficient data.

Tomomitsu Matono, Masahiko Koda, Yoshikazu Murawaki – 23 May 2012 – A 68‐year‐old male with liver cirrhosis and hepatocellular carcinoma treated by radiofrequency ablation was hospitalized for right hepatic hydrothorax and ascites. Perflubutane injected into the peritoneal cavity after an ultrasonography contrast agent revealed jet‐like flow from the ascites to a pleural effusion, indicating a diaphragmatic defect. A hepatic hydrothorax was sutured under thoracoscopy and did not recur. An intraperitoneal injection of perflubutane enables a less‐invasive diagnosis of a diaphragmatic defect.

Tomomitsu Matono, Masahiko Koda, Yoshikazu Murawaki – 23 May 2012 – A 68‐year‐old male with liver cirrhosis and hepatocellular carcinoma treated by radiofrequency ablation was hospitalized for right hepatic hydrothorax and ascites. Perflubutane injected into the peritoneal cavity after an ultrasonography contrast agent revealed jet‐like flow from the ascites to a pleural effusion, indicating a diaphragmatic defect. A hepatic hydrothorax was sutured under thoracoscopy and did not recur. An intraperitoneal injection of perflubutane enables a less‐invasive diagnosis of a diaphragmatic defect.

Alessio Aghemo, Gian Maria Prati, Maria Grazia Rumi, Roberta Soffredini, Roberta D'Ambrosio, Emanuela Orsi, Stella De Nicola, Elisabetta Degasperi, Valeria Grancini, Massimo Colombo – 22 May 2012 – Hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection is associated with insulin resistance (IR), which is a condition known to influence the progression of liver fibrosis and the response to pegylated interferon (PEG‐IFN)/ribavirin (RBV) therapy. We aimed to assess whether a sustained virological response (SVR) after antiviral therapy prevents the development of IR in the long term.

Vincent Lo Re, Jessica Volk, Craig W. Newcomb, Yu‐Xiao Yang, Cristin P. Freeman, Sean Hennessy, Jay R. Kostman, Pablo Tebas, Mary B. Leonard, A. Russell Localio – 22 May 2012 – Hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection has been associated with reduced bone mineral density, but its association with fracture rates is unknown, particularly in the setting of human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) coinfection.

Ira M. Jacobson, Patrick Marcellin, Stefan Zeuzem, Mark S. Sulkowski, Rafael Esteban, Fred Poordad, Savino Bruno, Margaret H. Burroughs, Lisa D. Pedicone, Navdeep Boparai, Weiping Deng, Mark J. DiNubile, Keith M. Gottesdiener, Clifford A. Brass, Janice K. Albrecht, Jean‐Pierre Bronowicki – 22 May 2012 – In comparison with peginterferon/ribavirin alone, boceprevir with peginterferon/ribavirin significantly improves sustained virological response (SVR) rates in patients with chronic hepatitis C virus (HCV) genotype 1 infections, but treatment failure remains a significant problem.

22 May 2012

Monika Sarkar, Peter Bacchetti, Audrey L. French, Phyllis Tien, Marshall J. Glesby, Marek Nowicki, Michael Plankey, Stephen Gange, Gerald Sharp, Howard Minkoff, Marion G. Peters, for the Women's Interagency HIV Study (WIHS) – 22 May 2012 – Among individuals with and without concurrent human immunodeficiency virus (HIV), racial/ethnic differences in the natural history of hepatitis C virus (HCV) have been described. African Americans have lower spontaneous HCV clearance than Caucasians, yet slower rates of liver fibrosis once chronically infected.

Marcin Krawczyk, Monica Acalovschi, Frank Lammert – 22 May 2012