The use of a diagnostic system for ultrasonic liver tissue characterization based on computerized B-mode image analysis is clinically tested and compared with the results of conventional realtime and static grey scale liver ultrasound as independently assessed by three experienced observers. The diagnostic classes, normal, diffuse parenchymal and malignant disease, are clearly differentiated by computerized image analysis which is superior to subjective evaluation of liver echograms. Computerized analysis also renders a reliable and clinically useful diagnostic subclassification of diffuse parenchymal disease into echopattern changes prevalent in chronic hepatitis, cirrhosis/fibrosis, fatty infiltration and a mixed state of cirrhosis/fibrosis with fatty infiltration which cannot be achieved by conventional liver ultrasound.
The prevalence of Gilbert's syndrome was studied in a randomized group of 1530 persons (785 men and 745 women, aged 20-40 years) living in the Heidelberg region of the Federal Republic of Germany. It was found to be present in 12.4% of men and 4.8% of women, i.e. a total of 8.6% for the entire group. In women the serum bilirubin level (mean 12.0 +/- 5.1 mumol/l) was significantly lower than in men (mean of 13.7 +/- 6.8 mumol/l; P less than 0.001). Analysing the frequency distribution of serum bilirubin revealed that patients with this syndrome do not constitute a population of its own, but rather form the upper end of the normative bilirubin distribution curve.
A microsomal ethanol oxidizing system (MEOS) is present in the colonic mucosa of the rat. This MEOS metabolizes ethanol to acetaldehyde at the physiological pH of 7.4. Alcohol dehydrogenase or catalase are not involved in the reaction. The Michaelis Menten constant of the reaction is 13.7 +/- 0.3 mM and the maximal velocity is 219 +/- 30 pmoles acetaldehyde/mg microsomal protein X min. Bacterial ethanol metabolism does not contribute to the acetaldehyde production in the colonic MEOS. Chronic ethanol consumption has no effect on colonic MEOS activity. In addition, chronic ethanol ingestion does not affect colonic microsomal NADPH-cytochrome-c-reductase nor benzo(a) pyrene hydroxylase activity.
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