The Connecticut Department of Public Safety laboratory recently addressed a legal challenge to a hospital alcohol dehydrogenase (ADH)-based serum ethanol determination based on the suggestion of interference by lactate dehydrogenase (LDH)-catalyzed oxidation of lactate. Both ADH- and LDH-oxidations require NAD(+) (present in excess in the assay). NADH produced by LDH-catalyzed lactate oxidation...

Idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (IPF), the most prevalent of the idiopathic interstitial pneumonias, is associated with a poor prognosis. An accurate diagnosis of IPF is essential for its optimal management. The 2011 American Thoracic Society (ATS)/European Respiratory Society (ERS)/Japanese Respiratory Society (JRS)/Latin American Thoracic Association (ALAT) recommendations on the diagnosis and ...

The availability of nucleoside analogues has broadened treatment options for chronic hepatitis B virus (HBV ) infection. Registered treatment for chronic hepatitis B currently consists of (pegylated) interferon, lamivudine and adefovir, while entecavir is expected to be licensed in the short term. Treatment is generally recommended for patients with high serum HBV DNA and elevated ALAT, indicat...

the purpose of this study was to determine a simple and sensitive test for clinical diagnosis of various hepatic diseases. therefore y-glutamyltranspeptidase (y** gt), aspartate aminotransferase (asat), alanine aminotr¬ansferase (alat) and alkaline phosphatase (alp) levels were measured in 29 healthy adults and 88 sera with various liver diseases. table i represents the results, according to wh...

cis-4-Hydroxy-L-proline (CHP) is being clinically evaluated as an anticancer drug. Since this compound targets the production of L-proline-rich proteins and critical L-proline residues, its impact on long-term cultures of human hepatocytes and toxicity in rats was studied to investigate possible effects on hepatic function, previously reported in rat hepatocytes. In the HEPAC2 human hepatocyte ...

Pyrazinamide (PZA) combined with either ethambutol (EMB) or a fluoroquinolone for 6-12 months is one of the treatments recommended for latent tuberculosis infection (LTBI) in contacts exposed to multidrug-resistant tuberculosis (MDR-TB). The aim of the present study was to describe the side effects related to combined PZA and EMB treatment given for LTBI, in contacts previously exposed to MDR-T...

Purpose: The effects of oral administration of ethyl acetate, ethanol and aqueous extracts of Adenema hyssopifolium G.Don (Gentianaceae) on carbon tetrachloride-induced liver disorders were investigated. Methods: Rats were individually treated daily with 300 and 600 mg/kg dose of either ethyl acetate, ethanol or aqueous extracts of A. hyssopifolium, respectively, following induction of liver da...

A 72-year-old diabetic male was referred by his general practitioner because of gradually increasing diarrhoea and abdominal pain over several days. On examination, he had mild acidotic breathing, and he appeared slightly dehydrated. The abdomen was distended and tender on palpation. Blood chemistry revealed slight derangement of his diabetes, and a neutrophil count of 12 x 10/l, liver enzymes ...

To the Editor: Prevalence of chronic hepatitis C virus (HCV) among blood donors has been assessed in a few West African countries ; most recent estimates range from 1.1% to 6.7% (1–4). A recent meta-analysis of studies, including a confirmation test, yielded an average prevalence of HCV infection of 3.0% (5). Until 2001, no systematic screening of HCV infection occurred among blood donors in Se...