Complications following high-dose percutaneous ethanol injection into hepatic tumors.
OBJECTIVE
Percutaneous ethanol injection therapy (PEIT) with a 2-10 ml ethanol dose per session is widely used in the treatment of small hepatocellular carcinoma. Larger doses have been restricted for fear of complications. The aim of the present study was to make a retrospective evaluation of the complications following treatment of hepatic tumors with high doses of ethanol (up to 200 ml).


METHODS
The medical records of 15 patients treated repeatedly with PEIT were reviewed retrospectively to detect side effects or complications. Eleven of these patients had undergone transarterial chemoembolization (TAE) prior to PEIT. Of 173 ethanol injections in doses of 2-200 ml (mean 49 ml), more than 10 ml had been injected on 138 occasions. The chi-square test was used to evaluate the differences in pain frequency among the various dosage groups.


RESULTS
Serious complications did not occur. Pain was a common side effect, occurring in 48% of the procedures. Immediate pain during the treatment was related to the ethanol dose and increased significantly with increasing doses (p < 0.01). Other side effects were rare.


CONCLUSIONS
PEIT with doses higher than previously reported seems to be safe. This should encourage further clinical studies that aim at fully working out the clinical value of such treatment.
Department of Radiology, Helsinki University Central Hospital, Finland.
E
E
Tapani
M
M
Soiva
J
J
Lavonen
S
S
Ristkari
T
T
Vehmas
D016461:Chemoembolization, Therapeutic; D003131:Combined Modality Therapy; D004305:Dose-Response Relationship, Drug; D000431:Ethanol / Q000008:administration & dosage / Q000009:adverse effects* / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D015552:Injections, Intralesional; D008113:Liver Neoplasms / Q000556:secondary / Q000628:therapy*; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D010146:Pain / Q000139:chemically induced* / Q000453:epidemiology; D012189:Retrospective Studies
D000431:Ethanol