Guido Torzilli, Natale Olivari, Daniele Del Fabbro, Piera Leoni, Adele Gendarini, Angela Palmisano, Marco Montorsi, Masatoshi Makuuchi – 30 January 2004 – Fine‐needle biopsy (FNB) is associated with problems, such as tumor seeding, which are not negligible. The aim of this study was to validate prospectively the accuracy of our diagnostic work‐up without FNB, not just to address but also to rule out from a surgical program patients with focal liver lesions (FLLs). From September 2001 to July 2003, 89 patients were seen at an outpatient clinic for FLLs.

Daniel Jaeck, Philippe Bachellier, Elie Oussoultzoglou, Jean‐Christophe Weber, Philippe Wolf – 30 January 2004 – A multicenter retrospective review of 1467 patients treated by liver resection (LR) for hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) in Europe over a 13‐year period showed a mean mortality rate of 10.6%, which was correlated with the extent of LR, the etiology of cirrhosis and the study period with an improvement during the last years. Improved 5‐year overall survival (20–51%) and disease‐free survival (20–33%) reached similar rates in cirrhotic than in non‐cirrhotic patients.

Jay H. Hoofnagle – 30 January 2004

Rubén Francés, Susana Benlloch, Pedro Zapater, José M. González, Beatriz Lozano, Carlos Muñoz, Sonia Pascual, Juan A. Casellas, Francisco Uceda, José M Palazón, Fernando Carnicer, Miguel Pérez‐Mateo, José Such – 30 January 2004 – Bacterial translocation is currently considered the main pathogenic mechanism leading to spontaneous bacterial peritonitis in patients with advanced cirrhosis and ascites. However, to the authors' knowledge there is no information regarding the characteristics of this process in humans.

Stefano Fiorucci, Elisabetta Antonelli, Eleonora Distrutti, Beatrice Severino, Roviezzo Fiorentina, Monia Baldoni, Giuseppe Caliendo, Vincenzo Santagada, Antonio Morelli, Giuseppe Cirino – 30 January 2004 – In fibroblasts, thrombin induces collagen deposition through activation of a G‐protein–coupled receptor, proteinase‐activated receptor 1 (PAR1). In the current study, we examined whether PAR1 antagonism inhibits hepatic stellate cell (HSC) activation in vitro and whether it protects against fibrosis development in a rodent model of cirrhosis.

Tai‐Nin Chau, Kam‐Cheong Lee, Hung Yao, Tak‐Yin Tsang, Tat‐Chong Chow, Yiu‐Cheong Yeung, Kin‐Wing Choi, Yuk‐Keung Tso, Terence Lau, Sik‐To Lai, Ching‐Lung Lai – 30 January 2004 – Liver impairment is commonly reported in up to 60% of patients who suffer from severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS). Here we report the clinical course and liver pathology in three SARS patients with liver impairment. Three patients who fulfilled the World Health Organization case definition of probable SARS and developed marked elevation of alanine aminotransferase were included.

Fin Stolze Larsen – 30 January 2004

Sarwa Darwish Murad, Dominique‐Charles Valla, Piet C. de Groen, Guy Zeitoun, Judith A.M. Hopmans, Elizabeth B. Haagsma, Bart van Hoek, Bettina E. Hansen, Frits R. Rosendaal, Harry L.A. Janssen – 30 January 2004 – Budd‐Chiari syndrome (BCS) is a rare disorder that is characterized by hepatic venous outflow obstruction. The aim of this study was to assess determinants of survival and to evaluate the effect of portosystemic shunting. In this international multicenter study, 237 patients with BCS, diagnosed between 1984 and 2001, were investigated.

Shan Zeng, Nikki Feirt, Michael Goldstein, James Guarrera, Nikalesh Ippagunta, Udeme Ekong, Hao Dun, Yan Lu, Wu Qu, Ann Marie Schmidt, Jean C. Emond – 30 January 2004 – Hepatic ischemia/reperfusion (I/R) injury associated with liver transplantation and hepatic resection is characterized by hepatocellular damage and a deleterious inflammatory response. In this study, we examined whether receptor for advanced glycation end product (RAGE) activation is linked to mechanisms accentuating inflammation on I/R in a murine model of total hepatic ischemia.

Jose M. Estrela, Angel L. Ortega, Julian Carretero – 30 January 2004