Glucocorticoids plus N-acetylcysteine in severe alcoholic hepatitis.

Background: Mortality among patients with severe acute alcoholic hepatitis is high, even among those treated with glucocorticoids. We investigated whether combination therapy with glucocorticoids plus N-acetylcysteine would improve survival.

Methods: We randomly assigned 174 patients to receive prednisolone plus N-acetylcysteine (85 patients) or only prednisolone (89 patients).

Cystic dystrophy of the duodenal wall associated with chronic alcoholic pancreatitis. Clinical features, diagnostic procedures and therapeutic management in a retrospective multicenter series of 23 patients.

Aim Of The Study: The aim of this retrospective multicenter study was to collect data from patients with chronic alcoholic pancreatitis and cystic dystrophy of the duodenal wall in order to better understand the outcome after medical, endoscopic and/or surgical treatment.

Patients And Methods: The data from medical records of 23 patients consecutively seen in ten primary referral centers from January 1990 to July 2004 were studied. Clinical, biological, and endoscopic features as well as imaging findings were recorded.