OBJECTIVE To investigate the effects of salvianolic acid B (SA-B) on portal hypertension induced by endothelin-1 in rats. METHODS Twenty-eight Sprague-Dawley rats were randomly divided into four groups: ET-1 group, ET-1+SA-B group, ET-1+ET(A)R blocker (BQ-123) group and ET-1+ET(B)R blocker (BQ-788) group. The rats of ET-1+SA-B group underwent intragastrical administration of salvianolic acid ...

BACKGROUND Portal hypertension is a major risk factor for hepatic failure or bleeding in patients who have undergone hepatectomy, but it cannot be measured indirectly. We attempted to evaluate the intraoperative ultrasonography parameters that correlate with portal pressure (PP) in patients undergoing hepatectomy. METHODS We examined 30 patients in whom PP was directly measured during surgery...

Portal hypertension, defined as an increase in pressure within the portal vein, is a detrimental complication in liver diseases. The increased intrahepatic resistance as a consequence of cirrhosis is the primary cause of portal hypertension (Figure 1). Once it is developed, portal hypertension influences extrahepatic vascular beds in the splanchnic and systemic circulation. Two major consequenc...

BACKGROUND Presence of retro-aortic left renal vein poses special challenge in creating spleno-renal shunt potentially increasing the chance of shunt failure. The technical feasibility and successful outcome of splenectomy with proximal spleno-renal shunt (PSRS) with retro-aortic left renal vein is presented for the first time. The patient was treated for portal hypertension and hypersplenism d...

Portal biliopathy is defined as abnormalities in the extra- and intrahepatic ducts and gallbladder of patients with portal hypertension. This condition is associated with extrahepatic venous obstruction and dilatation of the venous plexus of the common bile duct, resulting in mural irregularities and compression of the biliary tree. Most patients with portal biliopathy remain asymptomatic, but ...

PURPOSE To assess induced oscillating volumetric strain as a biomarker for intrahepatic blood pressure abnormalities. MATERIALS AND METHODS Harmonic vibrations of 25 and 50 Hz frequency were induced in the liver and measured by fast 3D vector field magnetic resonance elastography (MRE), followed by processing of the decomposed curl (shear) and divergence (compression) fields. After an initial...

BACKGROUND Recent studies have shown the presence of vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF)-dependent splanchnic angiogenesis in experimental models of portal hypertension, and the role of such neovascularisation on the development of both portosystemic collaterals and hyperdynamic splanchnic circulation. However, the mechanisms modulating angiogenesis in portal hypertension are unknown. Exp...

Portal hypertension is the leading cause of morbidity and mortality in liver cirrhosis. Complications of portal hypertension in cirrhotic patients include esophageal and gastric varices, portal hypertensive gastropathy, ascites, hepatorenal syndrome, hepatopulmonary syndrome and portopulmonary hypertension. The hepatic venous pressure gradient should be at least 10 mmHg for esophageal varices t...

Arterial pressure, portal pressure, hepatic venous pressure, and hepatic volume were measured simultaneously in anesthetized cats. When hepatic venous pressure was raised, hepatic volume increased at first rapidly then slowly. After 20 minutes, the volume increased at a steady rate which continued for at least 4 hours. During this period, the hepatic blood volume (Cr-tagged red blood cells) was...