Flow cytometry DNA content and morphobiological characteristics in chronic and neoplastic human liver disease.

In the search for parameters that can indicate changes in the behaviour of liver tissue from normal to chronic to neoplastic disease, DNA content by FCM (ploidy and percent of 4N cells) and morphobiological characteristics were investigated in fresh liver specimens of 16 patients with normal liver, 21 with persistent hepatitis (CPH), 23 with chronic active hepatitis (CAH), 17 with cirrhosis, and 13 with hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). Aneuploidy was mostly found in HCC specimens (54%), whereas the percentage of 4N peak decreased in chronic hepatitis and cirrhosis patients but increased to 11.09% in HCC samples (r = -0.02; p = 0.05). Finally, the binuclearity rate decreased gradually from normal to flogistic to HCC specimens. The 4N peak and the binuclearity rate were closely correlated in non-HCC (p = 0.0006, by T-test) but not in HCC samples. Only DNA ploidy and the binuclearity rate have been confirmed as being significantly and independently related to the histology of liver tissue by multivariate regression analysis.

Comparison between ranitidine 150 mg b.d. and ranitidine 300 mg nocte in the treatment of duodenal ulcer.

A multicenter trial was undertaken to assess the clinical usefulness of a single night-time dose of ranitidine in the short-term healing of duodenal ulcer. 384 patients with endoscopically diagnosed duodenal ulcer were randomly allocated to treatment with ranitidine either 150 mg b.d. or 300 mg as a single night-time dose for four weeks. The patients not healed after four weeks were again treated for four weeks. Of the 356 patients who completed the study, according to the protocol, 148 of 176 (84.1%) recovered on ranitidine 150 mg b.d. and 147 of 180 (81.7%) recovered on 300 mg nocte after four weeks. The healing rates increased to 95.8% and 94.8% respectively after four more weeks. Ulcer symptoms were rapidly reduced with no significant differences between the two treatment groups. There were no unwanted effects in either group and no significant abnormal biochemical or hematological changes. The results of this study support the hypothesis that ranitidine 300 mg given as one night-time dose and ranitidine 150 mg b.d. are equally effective. Ranitidine 300 mg once daily in a clinical practice may be advantageous to the patient.

Gastric abnormalities in cholera: epidemiological and clinical considerations.

The anatomofunctional status of the stomach was studied in cholera patients during the outbreak in Bari, Italy, in 1973. Of a total of 70 patients examined, 24 were found to have undergone gastric resection for ulcer in the past. Stomach secretions induced by fasting and histamine stimulation were studied in 30 patients, the majority of whom showed achlorhydria and other disturbances of gastric secretion. These abnormalities not only predisposed the patients to cholera infection but shortened the incubation period. The clinical course and severity of the disease were also related to the degree of gastric damage, the most serious cases occurring in gastrectomized patients.