[Methods of early diagnostics of hepatic fibrosis and cirrhosis].

The article covers the functional and clinical importance of hepatic fibrosis. Contemporary principles of invasive and non-invasive diagnostics of fibrotic changes are described. The article deals with the main types of fibrosis, chronic hepatic diseases in which they develop, and the most wide-spread systems of semiquantitative evaluation of fibrotic process' morphologic signs.

[Current methods of early diagnosis of hepatic fibrosis].

The article covers the functional and clinical significance of hepatic fibrosis. Contemporary principles of invasive and non-invasive methods of diagnostics of fibrotic alterations are described. The article also covers the main forms of fibrosis, chronic hepatic diseases in which they are found, and the most wide-spread systems of half-quantitative evaluation of morphological signs of the fibrotic process.

[Cytokine system in patients with chronic hepatitis C during treatment with interferon-alfa].

Aim: To study changes in serum levels of interleukine-1 beta (IL-1b), IL-6, TNF-alpha (TNFa), HM-HMF and TFR-1 beta (TFR-1b), expression of surface antigens CD14 and CD95 on blood monocytes from patients with chronic hepatitis C (CHC) treated with interferon-alpha (INFa).

Material And Methods: Examinations covered 25 CHC patients and 25 healthy controls. Concentrations of proinflammatory cytokines and growth factors in blood serum were measured with ELISA (kits by "R&D systems", USA).

[Cytokine regulation of liver inflammation and fibrosis during chronic hepatic diseases].

Serum concentrations of antiinflammatory cytokines and growth factors were measured in 30 patients with chronic viral hepatitis (HCV), mainly HCV RNA, and 10 patients with liver cirrhosis (LC), classes B and C according to Child-Pew. Serum concentrations of tumor necrosis factor-alpha (TNF alpha), granulocytic-macrophagal colony-stimulating factor (GM-CSF), and growth-transforming factor-1 beta (TGF1 beta) were increased in 63.86 and 80% patients with HCV and LC, respectively, and differed significantly (p < 0.

[Cytokine production in patients with chronic viral hepatitis C during treatment with interferon-alpha].

Serum content of proinflammatory cytokines (IL-1 beta, IL-6, TNF-alpha) and growth factors (GM-CSF, TGF-1 beta) and expression of CD14 and CD95 antigens on peripheral blood monocytes before and after 12-day therapy with alpha-interferon were studied in 25 patients with chronic viral hepatitis C (VHC). The concentrations of TNF alpha, GM-CSF, and TGF-1 beta were significantly increased (p < 0.05) and coexpression of CD14+ and CD95+ antigens on monocytes was increased by 61% in VHC patients in comparison with the control.