CD56-immunostaining of the extrahepatic biliary tree as an indicator of clinical outcome in biliary atresia: a preliminary report.

The aim of this study was to evaluate the usefulness of CD56-immunostaining using extrahepatic biliary tree (EHBT) specimens as a predictive factor in biliary atresia (BA). The staining intensity of CD56-stained specimens was scored in 13 children with BA as follows: 0 = no staining, 1 = weak staining, 2 = moderate staining, and 3 = strong staining. There was strong (score 3) staining of CD56 in the EHBT specimens of 4 patients with more than 1.

Idiopathic thrombocytopenic purpura complicated with biliary atresia: a rare occurrence and literature review.

The association of biliary atresia (BA) and idiopathic thrombocytopenic purpura (ITP) is extremely rare, with only 2 cases being reported in the literature. This report describes the very rare case of a 1-year-old boy with BA complicated with ITP after cholangitis and the successful steroid treatment of ITP. We review the literature on this type of relationship between BA and ITP and discuss the clinical features of this complication.

Management and outcome in prenatally diagnosed sacrococcygeal teratomas.

Background: The aim of the present study was to retrospectively determine the clinical factors affecting the outcome after birth in prenatally diagnosed sacrococcygeal teratomas (SCT).

Methods: Six cases of prenatal SCT were identified from January 1985 until August 2005. A retrospective review of case-notes and pathological reports was carried out.

Usefulness of axial planes of helical computed tomography for diagnosis of pancreaticobiliary maljunction in early infants with negative findings on magnetic resonance cholangiopancreatography.

Purpose: Magnetic resonance cholangiopancreatography (MRCP) is not sufficient to detect pancreaticobiliary maljunction (PBM) in young infants because the main pancreatic duct is not visualized and respiratory artifacts occur. To our knowledge, there are no reports highlighting the diagnostic accuracy of evaluation using the axial planes of helical computed tomographic (CT) scanning with contrast medium instead of 3-dimensional (3D) reconstruction. The aim of this study was to describe our experience and the characteristics of 3 children with PBM diagnosed using the axial planes of helical CT with contrast medium, although they showed negative findings of PBM by MRCP, instead of 3D reconstruction.

Laparoscopic liver biopsy using cup-shaped punch biopsy forceps and argon beam coagulator in children.

Needle liver biopsy is insufficient for measuring enzyme activity in liver tissue in child cases of intrahepatic cholestasis because the biopsy specimen obtained is too small. This study was undertaken to validate the feasibility of a new, relatively non-invasive laparoscopic liver biopsy technique combining the use of laparoscopic cup-shaped punch biopsy forceps (CPBF) and an argon beam coagulator (ABC) handpiece for the diagnosis and examination of liver enzyme activity in cases of intrahepatic cholestasis in children. The authors performed laparoscopic liver biopsy with the combined use of laparoscopic CPBF and an ABC handpiece in 10 children aged 4 months to 9 years old.

Rapidly enlarging solitary nonparasitic cyst of the liver in a child presenting as acute abdomen.

Symptomatic solitary nonparasitic cysts of the liver (SNCL) are rarely encountered in children, especially rapidly enlarging cysts presenting as acute abdomen. Therefore, it is difficult to establish the pre-operative diagnosis and to determine the treatment protocol of SNCL. While imaging techniques such as ultrasonography and computed tomography are modalities for diagnosis of SNCL, making a pre-operative diagnosis in the case of very large cysts remains difficult.