Eelco F. M. Wijdicks, Paola R. Blue, Jeffery L. Steers, Russell H. Wiesner – 1 January 1996 – Central pontine myelinolysis (CPM) after orthotopic liver transplantation is frequently diagnosed at autopsy. Its actual prevalence is unknown. We reviewed 386 orthotopic liver transplantations performed at the Mayo Clinic, Rochester, MN, including 39 with autopsy reports. CPM developed in four patients (1%) (found using magnetic resonance imaging in two, at autopsy in two).

Ziv Ben‐Ari, Amar P. Dhillon, Redwan Moqbel, Linda Garwood, David Booth, Keith Rolles, Brian Davidson, Andrew K. Burroughs – 1 January 1996 – There has been recent interest in eosinophils as a histological diagnostic marker of liver allograft rejection. However, the reliability of counting eosinophils in sections stained with hematoxylin and eosin (H&E) has not been evaluated previously. We quantified eosinophils in 10 day‐5 protocol liver biopsy specimens in 10 patients.

Scott D. Kelley – 1 January 1996

R G Gish, J Y Lau, L Brooks, J W S Fang, S L Steady, J C Imperial, R Garcia‐Kennedy, C O Esquivel, E B Keeffe – 1 January 1996 – To determine the safety and efficacy of ganciclovir treatment of hepatitis B virus (HBV) infection after liver transplantation, nine patients (seven males, two females; mean age, 38 years) with posttransplant HBV infection were treated with ganciclovir for 3 to 10 months. Ganciclovir was administered intravenously at an initial dose of 5 mg/kg/d and then increased to 10 mg/kg/d. Immunosuppressive drug therapy was maintained at low levels.

G Leroux‐Roels, C A Esquivel, R DeLeys, L Stuyver, A Elewaut, J Philippé, I Desombere, J Paradijs, G Maertens – 1 January 1996 – The quality of the hepatitis C virus (HCV)‐specific T‐cell response may greatly determine the course of an HCV infection. An adequate T‐cell response may contribute to a successful clearance of the virus and a rapid recovery from the disease. An inadequate response may lead to viral persistence and may eventually contribute to the pathogenesis of hepatocellular damage in chronic disease.

A J Sanyal, A M Freedman, P P Purdum, M L Shiffman, V A Luketic – 1 January 1996 – Transjugular intrahepatic portosystemic shunts (TIPS) are a recent innovation in the management of portal hypertension. In 1992, we had previously described an instance of severe hemolysis associated with this procedure. This study was undertaken to define and quantify the true incidence of TIPS‐associated hemolysis and its clinical spectrum, as well as to test the hypothesis that portal decompression by TIPS would ameliorate hypersplenism in patients with portal hypertension.

E M Alonso, J B Piper, G Echols, J R Thistlethwaite, P F Whitington – 1 January 1996 – The purpose of this study was to compare the incidence and severity of rejection episodes in a group of children receiving living related orthotopic liver transplants (LRLT) versus children receiving cadaveric liver transplants (CLT). Thirty‐eight patients received primary LRLT and 54 patients received CLT during a 3‐year period ending June 1993. Baseline immunosuppression consisted of cyclosporin, azathioprine, and corticosteroids.

R T Mathie, V Ralevic, K P Moore, G Burnstock – 1 January 1996 – The contribution of nitric oxide to mesenteric arterial vasodilator responses was investigated in the isolated perfused mesenteric arterial bed of cirrhotic rats (carbon tetrachloride/phenobarbitone; n = 6). Age‐ matched (n = 9) and phenobarbitone‐treated rats (n = 9) served as controls.

E Albano, P Clot, M Morimoto, A Tomasi, M Ingelman‐Sundberg, S W French – 1 January 1996 – We have previously shown that the treatment with diallyl sulfide (DAS) and phenylethyl isothiocyanate (PIC) of rats receiving ethanol in the alcohol tube‐feeding model effectively suppressed the induction of cytochrome P4502E1 (CYP2E1) by ethanol. Here we report that rat treatment with DAS and PIC significantly decreased the trapping of hydroxyethyl free radicals in liver microsomes incubated in vitro with ethanol.

G R Locke, T M Therneau, J Ludwig, E R Dickson, K D Lindor – 1 January 1996 – Histological staging is used for stratification and assessment of treatment efficacy in therapeutic trials for primary biliary cirrhosis (PBC). Knowledge of the rate of progression of the histological changes would be helpful in the design (duration) and conduct of clinical trials. The histological stages were recorded for liver biopsies performed annually on 222 patients during a randomized, placebo‐ controlled clinical trial in which therapy with D‐penicillamine (DPCA) was shown to be ineffective.