Iron accumulation in chronic hepatitis C: relation of hepatic iron distribution, HFE genotype, and disease course.

The aim of the present study was to describe the histopathologic features of hepatic iron accumulation in patients with chronic hepatitis C (CH-C) infection, the relation between HFE mutations and hepatic iron location and among iron distribution, HFE, and hepatic damage. We studied 206 patients with CH-C infection. Of 101 patients with hemosiderin deposits, 90.

Effects of venesections and restricted diet in patients with the insulin-resistance hepatic iron overload syndrome.

Goal: We evaluated the effect of venesections and restricted diet on iron and metabolic indices and liver function tests in patients with insulin-resistance hepatic iron overload (IR-HIO).

Materials And Methods: Patients were divided in three groups: (a) patients without any therapy who were followed-up for 36+28 months; (b) patients venesected; and (c) patients on dietary treatment. In each group baseline and end-point levels of serum iron and metabolic indices, and liver function tests were compared by Student's paired t-test and the relationship between serum ferritin and the other variables during treatment was evaluated by linear regression analysis.

Type 3 hemochromatosis and beta-thalassemia trait.

Type 3 hemochromatosis is a rare autosomal recessive disorder due to mutations of the TFR2 gene. We describe clinical, biochemical and histopathologic findings of a patient with type 3 hemochromatosis at presentation and during a follow-up of more than 20 yr and we evaluate the effect of an associated beta-thalassemia trait on phenotypic expression. At the age of 33 yr the patient showed a marked iron overload and severe iron-related complications.

Increased serum ferritin is common in men with essential hypertension.

Objectives: Insulin-resistance-associated hepatic iron overload syndrome (IRHIO) is characterized by high serum ferritin and presence of metabolic alterations that are part of insulin-resistance syndrome (IRS). Thus, clinical conditions characterized by a high prevalence of IRS may also be characterized by a high prevalence of IRHIO.

Design And Methods: We studied 88 consecutive patients with essential hypertension, 62 patients with IRHIO and 102 healthy normotensive controls.

Effects of hematocrit changes on flow-mediated and metabolic vasodilation in humans.

Endothelial function is noninvasively assessed by measuring nitric oxide-dependent increase in radial artery diameter accompanying the elevation in shear stress induced by increasing blood flow through a short-lasting ischemia of the hand. However, shear stress also depends on blood viscosity, whose changes might thus affect nitric oxide increase in a manner that is not properly reflected by blood flow changes. In 12 subjects with hemochromatosis, we measured ultrasonographically radial artery diameter and blood flow responses to a 4-minute ischemia of the hand.