A short history of portal hypertension and of its management.

The aim of our study was to review the changing trends in the treatment of complications from portal hypertension. A short history of portal hypertension and of the treatment of its complications is reported, underlying the most important achievements and changes.

Balloon-occluded retrograde transvenous obliteration of gastric varices: conception, evolution, and history.

The idea of transvenous obliteration of varices that complicate portal hypertension dates back to the 1970s. The clinical use of this minimally invasive procedure was probably lost with the advent of transjugular intrahepatic portosystemic shunt shortly afterward. The concept of retrograde obliteration of a gastrorenal shunt through the left renal vein originated from Olson et al at Indiana University. However, the Japanese (Kanagawa et al and subsequent authors) defined, developed, and technically perfected the clinical implementation of balloon-occluded retrograde transvenous obliteration. The evolution of balloon-occluded retrograde transvenous obliteration has come full circle, now gaining popularity in the United States, especially in patients who are not candidates for transjugular intrahepatic portosystemic shunt.

[Historical review of Portal Hypertension].

It has been more than 100 years since the nomenclature Portal Hypertension was put forward, during which the treatment of Portal Hypertension in medical circles experienced a gradual perfection. Reviewing the developmental progress can help to improve the treatment of Portal Hypertension.

Overview: Liver disease and transplantation.

Australia has had a proud and enviable record of seminal contributions to hepatology, with many contributors. Thus, any attempt to summarize these contributions ab initio in a brief review article is a significant challenge, primarily because it is so easy to overlook or underestimate particular aspects. In this article, I have confined my comments primarily to the areas where the contributions have had a significant global impact and have clearly been recognized internationally. This means that many worthwhile Australian additions will be omitted if there was less apparent international impact. The first significant interest in liver disease in Australia was from the Melbourne group at the Walter and Eliza Hall Institute (WEHI) and Royal Melbourne Hospital, leading to seminal contributions to the description, diagnosis, aetiopathogenesis and therapy of autoimmune hepatitis and primary biliary cirrhosis. Others from Royal Prince Alfred Hospital in Sydney contributed substantially to the effects of immunosuppression of autoimmune hepatitis and to early descriptions of primary sclerosing cholangitis. Other areas where Australians have contributed significantly include steatohepatitis, iron metabolism (and in particular hemochromatosis), viral hepatitis (both at the molecular and clinical level), portal hypertension, and transplant immunology. The remarkable contribution of Professor Dame Sheila Sherlock to Australian hepatology is also summarized.

[Pierre Marion, 1914-2000. Past president of the National Academy of Surgery. An illustrious figure in the city of Lyons]. / Pierre Marion, 1914-2000. Ancien président de l'Académie nationale de chirurgie. Figure illustre de la chirurgie lyonnaise.

The surgical work of Pierre Marion extends over a period of 40 years. It takes part in the history of portal hypertension surgery. Pierre Marion has been in France one of the major craftsmen of heart surgery with Paul Santy. In 1952, he performed the first pulmonary-embolectomy with success and later devoted his time to the development of valves and of an artificial heart. The second part of his life was dedicated to the direction of the Bullukian Foundation, founded in 1983, with the goal of helping medical research, supporting the armenian community in our country and promoting literary, artistic and theatrical creation in Lyons and its surroundings. Pierre Marion has written two remarquable books "Afin que batte le coeur", a history of the cardiac surgery epic and "Le génial bonhomme Ampère", consecrated to the life of this great scholar.

[The history of the treatment for portal hypertension].

Until recently, the only effective treatment for bleeding esophageal varices was surgery, including portal-systemic shunts, nonshunting operations, and selective shunts. New operations were developed from the neccessity to find a better therapeutic modality for the treatment. This article describes the history of development of surgical treatment for portal hypertension as well as introducing the outline of several such procedures. The history of nonoperative treatments, especially endoscopic injection screlotherapy, is also described: Endoscopic sclerotherapy as a treatment for bleeding esophageal varices had been employed before many definitive surgical procedures. In accordance with the development of fiberoptic endoscopy, endoscopic sclerotherapy came into prominance. The less invasive treatment is appreciated and popularized even among surgeons today, who once believed that shunt operation (or nonshunting operation) was the best modality of treatment for esophageal varices. Finally, this article provides readers with a simplified guide to Japanese participation in the development of treatment for esophagogastric varices.

Bleeding oesophageal varices.

BACKGROUND: The Danish contribution to evaluation and treatment of bleeding oesophageal varices. METHODS: Danish papers dealing with portal hypertension and oesophageal varices have been reviewed and set in relation to international publications. RESULTS: The Danish papers have mainly contributed with controlled clinical trials concerning both primary and secondary prophylaxis. Furthermore, they have dealt with pathophysiologic, clinical and experimental studies concerning portal haemodynamics and the evolution and treatment of variceal bleeding. CONCLUSION: The Danish studies have been well designed and are frequently cited. Further prospective randomized studies in the new treatment modalities are encouraged.