RESUMEN
Oxidative stress, which can be identified as increased exposure to oxidant and/or decreased antioxidant capacities, is widely recognized as a central feature of many diseases. To Identify the importance of oxidant stress in the pathogenesis of chronic liver disease, this study was carried out on 51 children with chronic liver diseases [18 viral hepatitis, 12 bilharzial hepatosplenomegally, 11 glycogen storage disease and 10 Wilson cases] and 15 apparently healthy children as controls. The results showed that, the serum lipid peroxide level in the cases was [5.33 +/- 0.22 nmol / ml which was significantly higher than controls [4, 27 +/- 0.31 nmol/ ml]. While the serum level of vitamin A in patient groups [18.39 +/- 4.98 micro g/ dl] was significantly lower than controls [42.96 +/- 10 ug / dl] At the same time the plasma level of vitamin E in patient groups [253.25 +/- 84.32 ug/dl] was significantly lower than controls [736.86 +/- 74, 4 ug/dl. A significant negative correlation was found between serum lipid peroxide and both of serum vitamin A and plasma vitamin E in all studied patient groups. The significant increase of lipid peroxide and decrease of serum vitamin A and plasma vitamin E as antioxidants, give a good evidence for oxidant stress in children with chronic liver diseases