Emergent orthotopic liver transplantation for hemorrhage from a giant cavernous hepatic hemangioma: case report and review.

Introduction: Cavernous hemangiomas represent the most common benign primary hepatic neoplasm, often being incidentally detected. Although the majority of hepatic hemangiomas remain asymptomatic, symptomatic hepatic hemangiomas can present with abdominal pain, hemorrhage, biliary compression, or a consumptive coagulopathy. The optimal surgical management of symptomatic hepatic hemangiomas remains controversial, with resection, enucleation, and both deceased donor and living donor liver transplantation having been reported.

Diagnosis of primary sclerosing cholangitis: a blinded comparative study using magnetic resonance cholangiography and endoscopic retrograde cholangiography.

Background: We hypothesized that magnetic resonance cholangiography (MRC) may have less accuracy for the diagnosis and the assessment of the severity of primary sclerosing cholangitis (PSC) than endoscopic retrograde cholangiography (ERC).

Objective: The aim of this study was to determine the diagnostic accuracy and interobserver agreement of both ERC and MRC in PSC.

Design: A case-control study.

Utility of bile duct brushings for the early detection of cholangiocarcinoma in patients with primary sclerosing cholangitis.

Background: In patients with primary sclerosing cholangitis, there are no reliable markers or imaging modalities to detect malignant changes or early cholangiocarcinoma when curative interventions may still be possible.

Methods: Clinical features and outcomes were evaluated for 47 patients who underwent 101 endoscopic retrograde cholangiopancreatography (ERCP) procedures with bile duct brushings and cytopathologic examination for the detection of malignant changes between January 2001 and 2004. Bile duct cytology was characterized as unsatisfactory, benign, atypical, or malignant.