[Assessment of exo- and endocrine function of pancreas following distal pancreatectomy].

AIM: The assessment of pancreatic resection volume influence on exo- and endocrine pancreatic functions. MATERIALS AND METHODS: The resected pancreatic volume influence was assessed in 47 patients: 31 (66%) patients after resections of pancreatic body and tail, and 16 (34%) patients after distal resections. The exocrine pancreatic function was assessed by pancreatic fecal elastase 1 as well as endocrine pancreatic function was assessed by C-peptide level measurement. Computed tomography with intravenous contrast enhancement and postprocessing was used for pre- and postoperative pancreatic volume assessment. All tests were performed before and 1, 3, and 6 months after surgery. RESULTS: Type of surgery had no influence on C-peptide and pancreatic fecal elastase 1 levels (p>0.05). Exo- and endocrine pancreatic functions markers tended to decrease in 1st month after surgery with consequent functions restoration towards 6 months after surgery. There were 15 (35.7%) patients from 42 patients with normal exocrine pancreatic function with a fecal elastase 1 level decrease to 114.7±61.8 µg/g; exocrine insuficiency remained only in 2 (4.8%) patients after 6 months after surgery. C-peptide concentration decrease before surgery to less than 1.1 ng/ml was noticed only in 8 (17%) patients. C-peptide concentration decreased in 30 (63.8%) patients in 1st month after surgery, but after 6 months after surgery, C-peptide level decrease was only in 7 (14.9%) patients. CONCLUSION: The exo- and endocrine function of the pancreas is restored in more than 80% of patients after DR. Probably it could be associated with the activation of the pancreatic compensatory abilities.

[Сlinical, immunological and morphological features in different types of autoimmune hepatitis].

Due to the absence of the pathognomonic diagnostic criteria and to the diversity of clinical, serological and morphological manifestations, the diagnostic of the autoimmune hepatitis (AIH) remains to be a difficult task, which might lead to the delay of the timely beginning of the immunosuppressive therapy (IST), which in turn affects the disease outcomes. AIM: To studying the clinical, biochemical, immunological and morphological markers in patients with seronegative (SN) and seropositive (SP) AIH and the qualities of their response to the IST. MATERIALS AND METHODS: This retrospective cohort study included 82 AIH patients over the course of the years 20142019. All patients were selected in accordance with the criteria of the simplified assessment system of the IAIHG. Clinical, laboratorial and morphological characteristics of the AIH were analyzed. Therapy response was evaluated by the level of the ALT and IgG in 612 months after the start of the IST. The study material underwent statistical analysis using methods of parametrical and nonparametrical analysis. Statistical analysis was performed in the Statistica 13.3 (developed by StatSoft Inc., USA). RESULTS: 67/82 (81.70%) of the patients studied were women, median age of 54 years old [38; 70]. Patients with the diagnosis of the possible AIH according to the IAIHG made 85.4% (70 people). Almost everyone 96% (79/82) had morphological features of the interface-hepatitis with the lymphocytic/plasmocytic infiltration; emperipolesis was discovered in 63% of patients (49/82), hepatocellular rosette in 23% (19/82). Patients with SN AIH comprised 36.5% (30/82), with SP 63.4% (52/82). Comparative analysis demonstrated that the clinical profile in patients with SN and SP AIH is the same, while the incidence of immuno-associated diseases is significantly higher in the group of seronegative AIH. The morphological profile in the two AIH groups is identical in both typical and atypical manifestations. The number of responders to IST was 63% (19/30) SN AIH vs 67% SP AIH (35/52), did not differ significantly (p=0.529).However, that the number of patients with liver cirrhosis in the SN AIH group was twice as big as the ones with SP: 37% vs 17% (p=0.089). CONCLUSIONS: A comparative analysis of clinical, laboratory, morphological and clinical manifestations in the SN and SP AIH groups did not detected statistically significant significant differences, which may indicate that SN and SP AIH are the faces of one disease. It is possible that AB cannot be identified within the known spectrum of antibodies, or antibodies have slow expression, or are suppressed by the immune system. In any case, suspicions of AIH, in the absence of antibodies, it is recommended that liver biopsy be performed for the timely diagnosis of AIH and IST. Сirrhosis was more often diagnosed in the group SN AIH, which may be due to a later diagnosis, and therefore to untimely IST. The found frequent association of SN AIH with other immune-associated diseases requires a carefully study of this problem. The variety of clinical manifestations of AIH requires further study, the identification of clinical phenotypes with certain feature. This can help in the future to timely identify potentially problematic patients and predict a response to IST.

[Clinical immunological diagnostics of overlap syndrome during autoimmune hepatic disorders].

The complex determination of serum autoantibodies to hepatic antigens using enzyme immunoassay and immunoblot allows to increase the frequency of overlap syndrome identification during autoimmune hepatic disorders and its early diagnostics, that has a big clinical, diagnostic and prognostic importance. The levels of overlap autoantibodies combine with biochemical index and with disease activity and intensity of autoimmune processes during overlap syndrome of primary biliary cirrhosis/autoimmune hepatitis (PBC/AIH).

[Syndrome of overlap of autoimmune hepatitis and primary biliary cirrhosis with the outcome in cirrhosis of the liver, complicated by fatal bleeding in the small intestine].

The authors presents the clinical case of autoimmune overlap syndrome: autoimmune hepatitis and primary biliary cirrhosis with outcomes in the hepatic cirrhosis complicated fatal intestinal bleeding.

[Diagnostic value of autoantibodies to asialoglycoprotein receptor in autoimmune hepatitis].

Among 106 patients with autoimmune liver disease in 12 (11.3%) were found autoantibodies to asialoglycoprotein receptor (anti-ASGPR): in 5 (9.1%) of 55 with PBC, and 4 (17.4%) of 23 with AIH and 3 (10.7%) of 28 patients with syndrome chiasm (PBC + AIH). Detection of antibodies against the ASGPR is an effective method for diagnosis of autoimmune hepatitis. Further improvement of this method allows for monitoring and disease. Anti-ASGPR levels correlate with biochemical parameters and with the severity and manifestation autoimmune processes in patients with autoimmune hepatitis.

[Celiac disease is a 33-year-old man with periodic disease].

The article presents a clinical case of a 33-year-old Armenian man, who suffered from two rare diseases: Familial Mediterranean fever and celiac. The diagnosis of Familial Mediterranean fever: abdominal-feverish form, is confirmed by genetic markers. The morphological study of duodenal mucosa's specimens confirms the celiac.