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Query: UMLS:C0019209 (hepatomegaly)
 5,798 document(s) hit in 31,850,051 MEDLINE articles (0.00 seconds)

Three patients with amyloidosis in whom hepatomegaly was the main sign ara presented. In all cases jaundice coexisted which is regarded as a rare sign in amyloidosis. Attention is called to the diagnostic difficulties of amyloidosis especially without a preceding clinically overt disease process. The presence of a particularly high activity of alkaline phosphatase in the serum, and focal absence of 99Tc uptake by the hepatic macrophage system in liver scintigram suggested liver tumour. However, demonstration of monoclonal protein in blood, urine or ascitic fluid, or raised level of alpha 2 globulin, should call attention to the possibility of liver amyloidosis. The authors stress the usefulness of the method of preincubation of tissue biopsy specimens in potassium hypermanganate during routine staining with Congo red for differentiation of amyloid AA from amyloid AL.
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PMID:[Diagnostic difficulties in hepatic amyloidosis--clinical analysis and autopsy data of 3 cases]. 226 76

A patient with multiple, pyogenic hepatic abscesses is described, and the pathophysiology, etiologies, clinical and laboratory manifestations, and management of the disease are reviewed. A 55-year-old man with a history of ethanol abuse and pancreatitis developed fever, chills, general malaise, and right upper quadrant abdominal pain two weeks before hospitalization. Baseline laboratory and hematology results included serum albumin concentration, 3.2 g/dL; serum alkaline phosphatase concentration, 239 mIU/mL; total serum bilirubin concentration, 1.3 mg/dL; white blood cell count, 18,400/cu mm; red blood cell count, 4.7 million/cu mm; hemoglobin, 12.5 g/dL; and hematocrit, 38.8%. Abdominal ultrasound showed echo-free cavities throughout the hepatic parenchyma; abdominal computed-tomography (CT) scan showed hepatomegaly and multiple radiolucent spaces. CT-guided needle aspiration of a hepatic mass yielded purulent material that grew Fusobacterium necrophorum under anaerobic conditions. On day 7, the patient was started on i.v. ampicillin sodium-sulbactam sodium. A CT scan two weeks later showed a reduction in the number and sizes of abscesses. The patient continued i.v. therapy for one month, then was discharged on a regimen of p.o. amoxicillin trihydrate-clavulanate potassium. Hepatic abscesses are either amebic or pyogenic; the latter usually has a higher mortality. The etiologies of pyogenic hepatic abscesses include ascending cholangitis, portal vein bacteremia, systemic bacteremia, extension from a contiguous focus of infection, and trauma. Diagnosis is difficult and relies highly on clinical suspicion. Clinical symptoms include hepatomegaly, fever, chills, and malaise. Abnormal laboratory values include leukocytosis, anemia, and hypoalbuminemia. The abscesses are frequently polymicrobial; Escherichia coli is the most commonly isolated species. CT is the best radiological technique for diagnosis.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)
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PMID:Ampicillin-sulbactam therapy for multiple pyogenic hepatic abscesses. 229 77

A 7-year-old adult male ferret had progressive hair loss that was bilaterally symmetric. Also clinically evident were severe dehydration, polydipsia, muffled heart sounds, weak femoral pulses, hepatomegaly, lethargy, weakness, temporal muscular atrophy, dyspnea, and weakness. The blood profile of the ferret indicated profound leukopenia, eosinopenia, and high phosphorus, BUN, creatinine, and potassium concentrations, as well as high aspartate transaminase activity; the albumin concentration was low. The serum cortisol concentration was 8.1 micrograms/dl. Necropsy and histologic findings confirmed a diagnosis of hyperadrenocorticism, complicated by dilatative cardiomyopathy, chronic active hepatitis, and renal disease.
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PMID:Hyperadrenocorticism in a ferret. 365 2

The efficacy of treatment with spironolactone for congestive heart failure secondary to congenital heart disease was studied in 21 infants under 1 year of age. All received digoxin and chlorothiazide. In addition, group A (n = 10) was given supplements of potassium and group B (n = 11) received spironolactone. Daily clinical observations of vital signs, weight, hepatomegaly, and vomiting were recorded. Paired t test analysis showed significant reduction in liver size and weight (P less than 0.01) and respiratory rate (P less than 0.05) in group B, and less significant decreases in group A. The incidence of vomiting was slightly lower in group B. We conclude that the addition of spironolactone hastens and enhances the response to standard treatment with digoxin and chlorothiazide in infants with congestive heart failure.
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PMID:Spironolactone therapy in infants with congestive heart failure secondary to congenital heart disease. 703 14

A clinical trial was conducted in open, randomized, parallel fashion to determine the effectiveness and safety of bumetanide compared with those of furosemide in 42 outpatients with edema due to congestive heart failure. All patients were free from any significant hepatic or renal disease. The duration of the study was six months, except for 12 patients who were continued under treatment with bumetanide for an additional six months. Changes in body weight, edema, abdominal girth, hepatomegaly and other signs of congestive heart failure were evaluated. No statistically significant differences between bumetanide and furosemide were noted in these clinical parameters. Blood pressure was decreased in both groups, more consistently with furosemide, but without statistical significance. Laboratory tests revealed only minor changes in serum sodium, potassium, chloride, and uric acid in both groups throughout the treatment period, with the exception of chloride in the bumetanide group at 8 and 16 weeks. The patients who received extended treatment maintained a relatively stable state. No clinical adverse reactions were considered to be related to either drug. Both diuretics proved equally effective in reducing edema. The effective dose ratio of bumetanide:furosemide was 1:25.
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PMID:Clinical trial of bumetanide versus furosemide in patients with congestive heart failure. 704 Apr 96

Hepatomegaly after chronic alcohol consumption results from an increase in cell size and not in cell number. About 50--60% of the increase in liver weight is accounted for by an increase in intracellular water, while extracellular water remains constant. Therefore, a substantial reduction in the ratio of extracellular to intracellular water occurs. Intracellular potassium can osmotically account for 40--50% of the excess water retained in the hepatocytes. It is proposed that an increase in hepatocyte size after chronic alcohol consumption compresses vascular-sinusoidal pathways. This results, after a threshold in cell size is exceeded, in increased intrahepatic and portal pressure. Possible factors responsible for the threshold are proposed. By applying the concept that animal cells act as osmometers, a new in vitro model has been developed to study the relationship between cell enlargement and portal pressure. In this model, the existence of a threshold and the generation of portal hypertension associated with hepatocyte enlargement have been demonstrated. In humans with alcoholic liver disease, a threshold in hepatocyte size enlargement (1600--1700 micrometer 2) before pressures were increased was also observed. In these patients, a strong correlation was also found between hepatocyte size and intrahepatic pressure. The same correlation occurs regardless of the presence or absence of cirrhosis, therefore suggesting that a major determinant of portal hypertension in cirrhosis is cell size and not the existence of nodules of fibrous septa. The higher portal pressures found in cirrhotics may be explained by the fact that these patients have larger hepatocytes.
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PMID:Alcohol-induced hepatomegaly: pathogenesis and role in the production of portal hypertension. 708 88

The case records of six cats with hyperadrenocorticism presented to the Department of Clinical Veterinary Medicine, University of Cambridge, over an 11-year period were reviewed. Signalment and clinical signs were similar to previous reports but, in contrast to other reports, only three cats had diabetes mellitus on presentation. Abdominal radiographs revealed an adrenal mass in one case, obesity in all cases but no hepatomegaly. The adrenal glands were identified ultrasonographically in three out of six cases. Clinicopathological findings were non-specific. The diabetic cats had a significantly lower serum potassium concentration than the non-diabetic cats (P < 0.05). Results of adrenocorticotrophic hormone (ACTH) stimulation tests were supportive of a diagnosis of hyperadrenocorticism in the five cats in which they were performed. Five cats had pituitary-dependent hyperadrenocorticism (PDH) and one had an adrenal tumour. Differentiation between the two forms of hyperadrenocorticism was possible preoperatively in five out of six cats. Adrenal histopathology confirmed hyperplasia in four cats and adenocarcinoma in one cat. Three cats with PDH underwent bilateral adrenalectomy and two of these cats had low, flat ACTH stimulation tests postoperatively and survived for significant periods. The cat with an adrenal tumour underwent partial unilateral adrenalectomy, maintained a positive ACTH stimulation test postoperatively and was euthanased one week after surgery.
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PMID:Hyperadrenocorticism in six cats. 957 59

A 13-year-old, crossbreed dog presented with a history of recent onset polydipsia, progressive lethargy, weakness and reduced appetite. Blood tests showed raised concentrations of alkaline phosphatase and alanine aminotransferase with marginally low serum potassium. There was a leucocytosis with a mature neutrophilia and no eosinophils. Endocrine tests showed a normal aldosterone concentration and an exaggerated adrenocorticotropic hormone (ACTH) stimulation test, consistent with a diagnosis of hyperadrenocorticism (HAC). A diagnosis of adrenal-dependent HAC was made, based on the presence of a calcified mass involving the left adrenal gland, and hepatomegaly, on radiography and ultrasonography. The owners declined surgical adrenalectomy. Medical management with trilostane rapidly improved the clinical signs and normalised the serum chemistry. ACTH stimulation tests showed an improvement in post-ACTH cortisol concentrations and were used to make dose adjustments where necessary. At the time of writing, no adverse side effects had been seen and the dog remained well after 80 weeks of treatment.
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PMID:Trilostane treatment of a dog with functional adrenocortical neoplasia. 1265 28

Carnitine palmitoyl transferase I (CPTI), which converts acyl-CoA and carnitine into acyl-carnitine and free CoASH, is the rate limiting enzyme of hepatic mitochondrial beta-oxidation. CPTI-deficiency is a severe disorder characterized by Reye-like attacks with hypoketotic hypoglycemia, hepatomegaly, elevated liver enzymes and hyperammonemia. We developed a simple tandem-MS-based assay to measure CPTI activity in human fibroblasts. Surprisingly, a large part of the palmitoyl-carnitine formed in our assay by CPTI was degraded into C14- to C2-acyl-carnitines. Degradation of the product of CPTI leads to under estimation of the CPTI activity. When we used potassium cyanide to inhibit enzymes downstream of CPTI and thereby degradation of the product, we measured four times more CPTI activity than the previous methods. This inhibition is essential for correct calculation of CPTI activity. In fibroblasts of CPTI-deficient patients, CPTI activity was not detectable and this assay can be used for the diagnosis of CPTI-deficiency.
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PMID:An improved enzyme assay for carnitine palmitoyl transferase I in fibroblasts using tandem mass spectrometry. 1693 15

We present a 10-year-old girl who presented to our emergency services with difficulty in breathing of 2-days duration and progressive weakness of a month's duration. In a previous admission elsewhere, she had not been detected to have hyperthyroidism or electrolyte abnormalities. On admission, the child was in hypercapnic respiratory failure with tachycardia and hepatomegaly. A small goiter as well as signs of thyrotoxicosis were present. Laboratory investigations showed anemia, mildly elevated liver enzymes and serum potassium of 4.8mEq/L. Despite intubation and ventilation and other supportive management including propranolol, the patient could not be saved. Post-mortem biopsy of the thyroid showed diffuse hyperplasia of the follicles and muscles showed evidence of thyroid myopathy.
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PMID:Fatal thyrotoxic periodic paralysis with normokalemia. 1805 90


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