Gene/Protein Disease Symptom Drug Enzyme Compound
Pivot Concepts:   Target Concepts:
Query: UMLS:C0023890 (cirrhosis)
 42,195 document(s) hit in 31,850,051 MEDLINE articles (0.00 seconds)

Five medically qualified women and 36 men who were being treated for alcoholism at a London postgraduate hospital were studied. Most were middle-aged and at an advanced stage of alcoholism. They had usually started drinking heavily in the wake of well-established drug dependence or other psychiatric disorder; as students or housemen; and in the armed forces. Thirty-six doctors were followed up for a mean of 63 months. Five doctors either killed themselves or died of cirrhosis, and nine persisted in almost continuous dependent drinking, while seven completely overcame their alcohol problem and 10 had only occasional relapses. Their prealcoholic careers had ranged from repeated failure to spectacular success, but of 29 doctors alive at follow-up only eight were practising satisfactorily.
 ...
PMID:Characteristics and prognosis of alcoholic doctors. 100 87

We report a case of severe hypoglycemia and hepatic masses suspected to be an insulin-like growth factor-II (IGF-II)-producing hepatocellular carcinoma. A 62-year-old man presented with mental disorder in the night and early morning associated with extremely low blood sugar levels (less than 21 mg/dl). Computerized axial tomography and ultrasonography revealed a massive tumor in the right lobe of the liver with multiple secondary nodules, and a tumor thrombus in the portal vein. At autopsy 107 days after admission, the liver weighed 3070 g, histologically showing an Edmondson type II tumor with liver cirrhosis. IGF-II in plasma (899 ng/ml) and tumor tissue (2.4 micrograms/g) was higher than that in normal plasma (374-804 ng/ml) and non-tumor liver tissue (0.2 micrograms/ml), while IGF-I (14 ng/ml) was significantly reduced. IGF-II, probably produced by the liver tumor, appeared to be involved in the mechanism of hypoglycemia.
 ...
PMID:Primary hepatocellular carcinoma with severe hypoglycemia: involvement of insulin-like growth factors. 132 Jan 77

Portosystemic venous shunt within the hepatic parenchyma is rare, and its cause is disputed. Only 12 cases have been reported in the literature. Four new patients are presented here, all of whom had cerebral manifestations due to elevated blood-ammonia levels. One patient, initially misdiagnosed as having a psychiatric disorder, had multiple small portohepatic venous shunts in the peripheral hepatic parenchyma that were believed to be congenital in origin. The other three patients with clinical evidence of cirrhosis and portal hypertension had large tubular shunts between the posterior branch of the portal vein and the inferior vena cava. Shunts of this type were considered to be the collateral pathways developed in the hepatic parenchyma as a result of portal hypertension. The diagnosis of intrahepatic portosystemic venous shunts was established by angiography in all four patients. Sonography and CT failed to show the multiple small shunts, but did provide diagnostic information concerning the large tubular shunts. Intrahepatic portosystemic venous shunt can be the cause of hepatic encephalopathy. One should be familiar with the typical radiographic manifestations of this condition to prevent misdiagnosis as a psychiatric or neurologic disorder.
 ...
PMID:Intrahepatic portosystemic venous shunt: occurrence in patients with and without liver cirrhosis. 330 52

The mortality pattern of Koreans living in Osaka, Japan was surveyed by comparing their age-specific and age-adjusted death rates with those among Japanese during 1973-1982. Cancer was the leading cause of death among Korean males, while cerebrovascular disease was most common among Korean females in Osaka. Mortality rates from tuberculosis, cancer, mental disorder, cerebrovascular disease, chronic obstructive pulmonary diseases (COPD), liver cirrhosis, accidents and suicide were significantly higher for Korean males than for Japanese males. COPD, liver cirrhosis and accidents were more frequent for Korean females than for Japanese females. In cancers, liver cancer was most common among Korean males, followed by stomach and lung cancers. Stomach cancer was most frequent among Korean females, followed by uterine and liver cancers. The ratio of cancer mortality rates for Koreans and Japanese was significantly higher than 1.0 for oesophagus, liver and lung among males, and for liver among females. Koreans had considerably higher levels of liver cancer and liver cirrhosis compared with Japanese. Mortality from stomach cancer was significantly lower in both sexes among Koreans in Osaka and the reduction of this disease among Koreans in Japan occurred more rapidly than among Japanese.
 ...
PMID:Mortality among Koreans living in Osaka, Japan, 1973-1982. 372 84

A study of 510 patients in Scotland and northeastern England with histological evidence of alcohol-induced liver disease showed no difference in the age of presentation between males and females. Single men and widowed females were particularly susceptible to alcoholic liver disease. The social class distribution was similar to the population in general. Women were more reluctant to volunteer a history of alcoholism than men, they had a higher incidence of previous psychiatric illness (usually due to alcohol abuse) and they developed liver disease at lower consumption thresholds of alcohol than men. Patients under 40 years of age were more likely to have alcoholic fatty liver and less likely to have active cirrhosis than those over 40. Most often, the presenting symptoms were non-specific and tended to be related to the gastrointestinal system, particularly in women. Five per cent of patients were asymptomatic and 14% came to hospital for conditions other than alcoholic liver disease. Important clues to asymptomatic alcoholic liver disease included hepatomegaly, clubbing of the fingers and abnormal liver function tests. Gastro-oesophageal varices accounted for 40% of instances of haemorrhage and the mortality from upper gastrointestinal bleeding was 17%. Anaemia was the most common haematological abnormality. Alcoholic hepatitis was observed more frequently in the Glasgow area then elsewhere.
 ...
PMID:Alcoholic liver disease in Scotland and northeastern England: presenting features in 510 patients. 660 94

From 1938-1939 to 1958-1959 fertility dropped by 36.4% in the USSR, and it dropped by another 25.9% in the ensuing 11 years. Between 1969-1970 and 1977-1978 the indices of fertility increased by 4.7%. There are more 1st borns and fewer 3rd born children (and later). The general tendency to lower reproduction is explained by fewer children in those older than 25 years. Fertility levels differ greatly from 1 union republic to another, depending on whether women work and on the local customs. The mortality levels in the USSR declined steadily to 1965 and then started to rise, due to the aging of the population. In 1939 those 60 and over constituted 6.8% of the population, in 1979 12%. This tendency is particularly seen in the villages. In Azerbaidzhan and the Central Asian republics the proportion of those 60 and over in the villages is declining. The republics can be grouped into 4 categories in function of whether their populations are demographically young, mature, middle-aged, or old. Mortality is rising principally among men of working age--due to accidents, poisonings, traumas, and diseases of the vascular system. The indices for female mortality have stabilized in recent years. Before 1972 mortality was higher in the cities than in the country, but in that year they became approximately the same, and now it is higher in the country. In recent years (since the 1960's) the life expectancy for men has started to decline, due primarily to vascular diseases. Chronic diseases play a major role in the increased mortality, and these are due to such factors as alcoholism, smoking, environmental contamination, poor nutrition, a more rapid pace of life and production, less physical work, and a less mobile life. There is an increase in mental illness. Mortality is higher in unmarried men and men who have not completed secondary education. Alcoholism is a serious social problem. Research done abroad has shown a close relationship between alcoholism and cirrhosis of the liver, cancer of the larynx, throat, soft palate, intestine, and strokes. Foreign research has also shown the harmful effects of smoking.
 ...
PMID:[Basic traits of the medical demographic processes in the USSR and abroad]. 720 61

To determine adverse events of ribavirin in the treatment of chronic hepatitis C, 41 patients (18 with cirrhosis), treated with ribavirin at an initial dose of 600-1200mg day(-1), were analysed retrospectively (six patients were treated twice because adverse effects during the first treatment necessitated cessation of ribavirin). Indications for ribavirin included a contraindication (n = 15) an intolerance (n = 11) or a non-response (n = 15) to interferon (IFN). Ribavirin was combined with IFN 3 million units (MU) three times weekly for 15 patients and with azathioprine for six patients (five of whom were transplant patients). No cirrhotics and only one patient treated with ribavirin + IFN received azathioprine. The mean duration of treatment was 5 months (range 1-18 months). Sixteen of 47 treatments (34%) with ribavirin were stopped: four because of vomiting (8.5%), two for psychiatric disorder, one for dry cough, one for an unrelated cause, and eight (at 1-2 months) because of a fall in the level of haemoglobin (Hb) of 4.6 g dl(-1) (range 2.7-5.9 g dl[-1]); however, according to the rules of international protocol, we would have expected only four treatments (two in patients receiving azathioprine) with Hb < 8.5 g dl(-1) to be stopped. The decrease in Hb level occurred more slowly in patients treated with IFN plus ribavirin than in patients treated with ribavirin alone and was of lower clinical significance in patients with cirrhosis than in patients without cirrhosis. After exclusion of patients receiving azathioprine, there was no significant difference in the fall of Hb level between cirrhotic and non-cirrhotic patients and between patients treated with IFN plus ribavirin and patients treated with ribavirin alone. Interestingly, the platelet count of patients treated with IFN plus ribavirin fell less than in patients treated with IFN alone. The most important and expected adverse event associated with ribavirin was haemolysis. Anaemia < 8.5 g dl(-1), requiring cessation of ribavirin therapy, was present in 9% of patients and was worsened by azathioprine. Abdominal discomfort and dry cough were other, potentially important, clinical adverse events found in our study.
 ...
PMID:Effects of cirrhosis, interferon and azathioprine on adverse events in patients with chronic hepatitis C treated with ribavirin. 927 22

The numbers of elderly people in sub-Saharan Africa are growing rapidly with increasing life expectancy while at the same time the proportions of children in the populations are declining. The number of people 80 years and above increased tenfold in large parts of Africa since the 1950's, and the number of widows is growing fast. All this has several implications, including erosion of the social support by extended families and a dramatic change in the disease pattern. There will be increasing rates of cancer, liver cirrhosis, kidney failure, eye disease, osteoarthrosis, diabetes, mental illness and chronic degenerative illnesses such as cardiovascular disease. Multiple illness and permanent disability will become more common. African health care systems are ill-prepared for this transition, and social security for the elderly need to be improved in the coming years. Local and regional research into morbidity and well-being is important for policy formulation. The situation of different categories of chronically sick needs to be investigated. Improved health in childhood and middle age will probably be followed by improved health in old age, and this may offset the burden on the health care system of the growing number of elderly.
 ...
PMID:Health and the elderly in developing countries with special reference to sub-Saharan Africa. 952 43

Over a recent three year period, approximately 600 individuals responded to newspaper advertisements for research studies requiring healthy, cocaine using subjects. These subjects were screened using a standard phone interview in order to eliminate individuals with known medical or psychiatric illnesses that would exclude them from ongoing neuroimaging studies of drug abuse. Individuals were specifically asked about their hepatitis and HIV status. Of these, 170 subjects passed the phone screen, having no known medical or psychiatric illness outside of cocaine abuse/dependence and were willing to be further evaluated for the studies. These subjects were brought to the Medical College of Wisconsin's General Clinical Research Center and tested for, among other measures, hepatitis B, hepatitis C, and HIV. Of these, 144 completed the examination and all testing. In this cohort of assumed healthy subjects, 47 (33%) tested positive for antibodies to the hepatitis C virus (HCV). Only 7 (5%) tested positive for the hepatitis B surface antigen and 2 (1.4%) to HIV. The demographics of this cohort are 56% African-American, 81% male, 75% never-married, 55% unemployed with a mean age of 36 years. The percentage of subjects reporting any lifetime intravenous drug use among the HCV(+) and the HCV(-) cohorts was 77% vs. 29% respectively. Some routes of HCV transmission are still unclear and may reflect lifestyle or other factors related to cocaine use outside of parenteral drug use. Since almost all HCV infections become chronic, and many progress to chronic active hepatitis, cirrhosis, and ultimately hepatocellular carcinoma, these observations suggest a significant epidemic in an unsuspecting population with little regular access to health care. These individuals also form a large pool for the continued transmission of HCV to the general population. Additional public health interventions are suggested.
 ...
PMID:Hepatitis C virus infection in cocaine users--a silent epidemic. 1093 40

Even though the number of alcohol-dependent women is only about 1/3 of the number of alcoholic men, the alcoholism in women, by its clinical features and its course, is the source of therapeutic and economic stakes, particularly in young women among whom an increase of alcohol consumption related problems is reported. Another specificity of the female alcoholism is the lack of care seeking, whereas women have tendency globally to solicit more often care structures than men. Women represent only 1/4 of the overall treated alcoholic patients. The main explanation for this phenomenon is the pejorative social and moral connotation of the female alcoholism, with frequent feelings of shame and deep guilt, that also account for the frequency of hidden and lonely alcohol intakes. The female alcoholism is essentially characterized by an increased vulnerability to the toxic effects of the alcohol, whereas the pathological consumption starts later and with smaller daily amounts. Most studies have revealed a higher vulnerability in women to somatic complications directly attributable to the alcohol organs toxicity, such as hepatic cirrhosis and cardiovascular complications (high blood pressure, non obstructive cardiomyopathy). The reported brain morphological abnormalities could also occur more precociously in alcoholic women than in men. A decreased corpus callosum size among alcoholic women, but not in alcoholic men, was thus found in a recent study, compared with healthy controls. Among the different hypothesis proposed to explain this increased alcohol toxicity, the most incriminated is higher alcohol blood rates for the same ingested amount, mainly of the fact of a lower size with a weaker proportion of the bodily total water, but also of weaker concentrations of gastro-intestinal tract ADH, or of a longer metabolism during some menstrual phases. Indeed, some experimental studies on animal showed that the alcohol toxic effects may occur only from a threshold of alcohol blood rate. More recent studies suggest that the explanation to keep is more related to the lower gastric metabolism in women (lower ADH activity), than the difference of gastric volume or alcohol hepatic oxidation. Regarding to comorbidity, in the Epidemiologic Catchment Area survey, 65% of women, versus 44% of men, with abuse and/or dependence to alcohol had at least one another life-time psychiatric disorder (mainly depression and anxiety disorders), compared to 36% of the overall women of the studied sample. On the other hand, the alcohol dependence is, more often than in men, secondary to other psychiatric disorders, essentially depressive episodes, but less associated to antisocial behaviours. Among the different etiopathogenic factors involved in the alcohol dependence occurrence, genetic factors seem to have a determinant impact. According to the previous family, separation/adoption and twins studies performed, genetic factors could explain 50 to 60% of the alcoholism vulnerability in both men and women. In this context, and whereas we assist to the development of etiopathogenic models with new therapeutic perspectives in alcohol dependence, it seems necessary not to neglect female alcoholism specificities.
 ...
PMID:[Clinical and biological specificities of female alcoholism]. 1250 62


1 2 3 Next >>