Prevalence of chronic (latent) pancreatitis in hospitalized chronic consumers of alcohol.

A pancreatic echographic investigation was carried out in 120 chronic consumers of alcohol, hospitalized for digestive diseases (hepatic, gastrointestinal) or extradigestive diseases (rheumatic, cardiovascular). Seventy cases (66%) presented pancreatic echographic--structural changes of various degrees. In 50 patients (41.

Decision analysis in the clinical and imaging diagnosis of acute cholecystitis.

The importance of clinical, laboratory and imaging data in the diagnosis of acute cholecystitis (AC) was studied in 825 patients with right upper quadrant pain hospitalized in the Surgical Clinic of the Fundeni Hospital--Bucharest, between January 1, 1986 and June 30, 1988. A number of 21 parameters were analysed in each case. Of these 825 patients, 259 were considered after surgery as AC.

[The cholestasis syndrome. A critical evaluation of an exploratory strategy].

The authors studied 160 cases of biliary stasis: 120 having intrahepatic cause (101 hepatic cirrhoses and 19 primitive biliary cirrhoses) and 40 extrahepatic cause (17 choledochal lithiases and 23 cancers of the pancreas head) and check up the diagnosis value of two investigation algorithms: echography, the first investigation, followed by hepatic biopsy puncture, if the intrahepatic biliary ducts are not dilated, or transhepatic cutaneous cholangiography if the intrahepatic biliary ducts are dilated in comparison with intravenous cholangiography in the first investigation. Echography has an increased diagnosis yield (96% sensitivity, 99% specificity), is cheap, noninvasive and is the first imaging exploration used in biliary stasis syndrome.

[Is an esophageal transit scintigram necessary in patients with gastroesophageal reflux?].

Efficient esophageal clearance has an important defence role in the pathogenesis of the gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD). Many GERD patients have esophageal disturbances associated with or secondary to reflux, producing delayed clearance. This delay exposes the esophageal mucosa to the reflux acid content.