Endoscopic variceal ligation is superior to combined ligation and sclerotherapy for esophageal varices: A multicenter prospective randomized trial

Z. A. Saeed, G. V. Stiegmann, F. C. Ramirez, R. M. Reveille, J. S. Goff, K. S. Hepps, R. A. Cole – 30 December 2003 – Patients who have bled from varices remain at risk for rebleeding. There is interest in methods that would enable rapid eradication of varices. The present trial was designed to study whether combining ligation with sclerotherapy will allow quicker eradication of varices than either modality alone. Patients with bleeding esophageal varices were randomized into ligation or combination therapy groups.

Alcoholism and alcoholic organ damage and genetic polymorphisms of alcohol metabolizing enzymes in Chinese patients

Y. Chao, T. Young, H. Tang, C. Hsu – 30 December 2003 – It is still not clear why some alcoholic patients acquire certain organ‐specific complications of alcoholism whereas other alcoholic patients acquire different ones. As we know the liver alcohol dehydrogenase (ADH), aldehyde dehydrogenase (ALDH), and cytochrome P4502E1 (P4502E1) are polymorphic at the ADH2, ADH3, and ALDH2 loci and the 5′‐flanking region of the P4502E1.

Effect of nitric oxide on iron‐mediated oxidative stress in primary rat hepatocyte culture

O. Sergent, B. Griffon, I. Morel, M. Chevanne, M. Dubos, P. Cillard, J. Cillard – 30 December 2003 – An iron‐mediated oxidative stress caused by an increase of the intracellular pool of low molecular weight complex of iron (LMWC) can be observed with iron overloading or ethanol metabolism. The aim of this study was to determine whether nitric oxide (NO) behaved as a pro‐oxidant or an antioxidant in such an iron‐mediated oxidative stress in rat hepatocytes.

Graft and systemic disease in long‐term survivors of liver transplantation

G. I. Slapak, R. Saxena, B. Portmann, E. Gane, J. Devlin, R. Calne, R. Williams – 30 December 2003 – In this clinicopathological study, we have examined the prevalence of biochemical and histological graft abnormalities in 116 patients who have lived for longer than five years since orthotopic liver transplantation (mean, 8.4 years [range, 5.2‐19.5 years]). In each patient, the protocol biopsy was carried out in addition to full clinical, biochemical, and immunological evaluation.

Detection by ligase chain reaction of precore mutant of hepatitis B virus

S. Minamitani, S. Nishiguchi, T. Kuroki, S. Otani, T. Monna – 30 December 2003 – The clinical diagnosis of infection with the most common precore mutant of hepatitis B virus (HBV), that with a point mutation from guanine to adenine at nucleotide 83 in the precore region, is important because the disease may progress rapidly despite interferon therapy. A practical method to detect this mutant is needed. With the ligase chain reaction (LCR), target DNA sequences can be amplified and single base mutations can be detected.

Liver transplantation in Asian patients with chronic hepatitis B

B. M. Ho, S. K. So, C. O. Esquivel, E. B. Keeffe – 30 December 2003 – It has been suggested that Asian patients have reduced survival after liver transplantation because of greater recurrence of hepatitis B virus (HBV). We analyzed the outcome of Asian and non‐Asian patients receiving transplants for chronic hepatitis B between May 1988 and March 1994. Baseline Child‐Pugh score and United Network for Organ Sharing (UNOS) status, HBV recurrence, and survival were compared between the two groups. All but one patient received variable doses of hepatitis B immune globulin.

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