Hepatic fibrogenic activity in chronic alcoholic pancreatitis.
The prevalence and the mechanisms of hepatic fibrosis in chronic alcoholic pancreatitis remain uncertain. The aim of this study was to investigate the fibrogenic activity of the liver in patients with chronic pancreatitis and its relation with either the alcohol or cholestasis. Liver biopsies were obtained from 16 patients with chronic pancreatitis at the time of surgery and from 10 organ donors. Samples were processed for histologic examination to assess the presence and extent of fibrosis, inflammatory reactions, and cholestasis- and alcohol-related lesions. In other samples, the collagen content was measured by morphometry, and prolylhydroxylase activity was determined. Liver-function tests, ultrasonography, and endoscopic retrograde cholangiopancreatography were performed before surgery in all the patients. Of patients with chronic pancreatitis, 75% had significantly greater hepatic fibrosis and prolylhydroxylase activity than the control group. Moreover, prolylhydroxylase activity in patients with chronic pancreatitis was higher in those with cholestasis or partial obstruction of the common bile duct than in those without cholestasis or partial obstruction of the common bile duct. Both the fibrogenic activity and the collagen content in the livers of patients with chronic alcoholic pancreatitis are significantly increased, even in those without histologic lesions, and these alterations may be secondary to a partial occlusion of the common bile duct.
Valderrama
R
R
Gastroenterology Service, Hospital Clínic, University of Barcelona, Spain.
Navarro
S
S
Bruguera
M
M
López
J M
JM
Caballería
J
J
Bianchi
L
L
Pérez-Ayuso
R M
RM
Giménez
A
A
Adrián
M J
MJ
Parés
A
A
Fernández-Cruz
L
L
Terés
J
J
D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D001706:Biopsy; D002758:Cholangiography; D001651:Cholestasis, Extrahepatic / Q000150:complications / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging; D006801:Humans; D008099:Liver / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging / Q000473:pathology; D008103:Liver Cirrhosis / Q000150:complications* / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging / Q000201:enzymology / Q000473:pathology; D008111:Liver Function Tests; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D019512:Pancreatitis, Alcoholic / Q000150:complications* / Q000201:enzymology; D011393:Procollagen-Proline Dioxygenase / Q000378:metabolism
D011393:Procollagen-Proline Dioxygenase