BACKGROUND Portal vein gas is an ominous radiological sign, which indicates a serious gastrointestinal problem in the majority of patients. Many causes have been identified and the most important was bowel ischemia and mesenteric vascular accident. The presentation of patients is varied and the diagnosis of the underlying problem depends mainly on the radiological findings and clinical signs. T...

OBJECTIVES To determine whether preoperative portal vein embolisation improves the operative outcome of patients undergoing extended right-sided hepatic resection for hepatobiliary malignancy. DESIGN Prospective non-randomised study. SETTING University teaching hospital, Hong Kong. PATIENTS Ninety-two patients underwent extended right-sided hepatic resection for hepatobiliary malignancy d...

In serial sagittal sections of a fetus on week 9 (crown-rump length, 36 mm), we incidentally found absence of the usual portal vein through the hepatoduodenal ligament. Instead, an anomalous portal vein originated behind the pancreatic body, crossed the lesser sac and merged with the upper part of the ductus venosus. During the course across the lesser sac, the vein provided a deep notch of the...

BACKGROUND Partial portal vein ligation causes an increase in portal pressure that remains stable even after the appearance of collateral circulation, with functional adaptation to prolonged decrease in portal blood flow. AIM To assess whether different constriction rates produced by partial ligation of the vein interfere with the results of this experimental model in rats. METHODS Three gr...

OBJECTIVE To evaluate the morbidity and mortality in surgical treatment of schistosomal portal hypertension in patients with inversion of the Portal/Splenic Vein diameter ratio. METHODS We conducted a retrospective cross-sectional study of patients undergoing surgical treatment of portal hypertension in the period between September 1993 and January 2004. The study population was divided into ...

Haemobilia or bleeding into the biliary tract is a very rare occurrence in children. We report an infant who bled profusely into the biliary tract from dilated pericholecystic veins that were part of a sponge like mass of tortuous, collateral veins replacing the portal vein. This venous anomaly is referred to as cavernous transformation of the portal vein or portal cavernoma and is a sequel of ...

Portal vein thrombosis is an unusual potential complication of liver resection. In our case it was due to ligation of the right branch of the portal vein during right hepatectomy in a patient without portal vein bifurcation. Hepatic angiography can delineate this abnormality and influence the choice of surgical management.

In adult liver transplantation, renoportal anastomosis (RPA) has been introduced as a useful technique for patients with grade 4 portal vein thrombosis and a splenorenal shunt. Here, we report a pediatric case in which RPA allowed a left lateral lobe living donor liver transplantation (LDLT) despite portal vein thrombosis and a large splenorenal shunt. At 36 days old, the patient underwent a Ka...