No abstract available.
Alanine Transaminase*

No abstract available.
Citric Acid Cycle/physiology ; Cytochrome P-450 Enzyme System/metabolism ; Fatty Liver/diagnosis/pathology/ultrasonography ; Humans ; Obesity/*complications ; Severity of Illness Index

A 65 year-old man with hepatocellulcar carcinoma (HCC) admitted to treat left lower leg swelling and pus discharge suspecting osteomyelitis. MRI of his lower leg revealed the bone metastasis. Whole body FDG PET/CT additionally detected left shoulder and right ilium metastasis. Hematemesis suddenly developed in this patient after 3 weeks. Metastasis of right tonsil was histologically proven. When we reviewed his FDG PET/CT, there was asymmetric mild hypermetabolism in the right tonsil. When focal hypermetabolism is shown in the organ physiologically taking glucose up such as tonsil, we should cautiously assess whole body PET/CT in the examination of distant metastasis. We present a patient with multiple distant metastasis including tonsil from HCC showing increased FDG uptake with the literature review.
Carcinoma, Hepatocellular ; Glucose ; Hematemesis ; Humans ; Ilium ; Leg ; Neoplasm Metastasis ; Osteomyelitis ; Palatine Tonsil ; Shoulder ; Suppuration

Background: Graphical abstracts (GAs) have recently been included as an essential element in various journals, including those in the field of Gastroenterology & Hepatology. However, there has been no study on the effect of GAs on the impact factor (IF) of journals, and the citation index or social media exposure of individual articles. Methods: We investigated the presence of GAs, total citations and social media exposure of full-length original articles in the top ten journals of gastroenterology and hepatology for three years (2019–2021). Citations and social media exposure were evaluated with the Web of Science citation index, Altmetric Attention score, Dimension recorded citation count, and PlumX index. Results: A total of 4,205 articles from ten journals were evaluated for three years. First, journals that have adopted GAs demonstrated significantly higher IF increases for the past three years than those of journals without GAs. The longer GAs have been utilized in a journal, the higher IFs the journal had. Secondly, individual articles with GAs had significantly higher Web of Science citation counts (median 14 vs. 12), more social media exposure (median 23 vs. 5) and more Altmetric.com tweet counts (median 15 vs. 7) than those of articles without GAs. In multiple regression analysis, the inclusion of GAs was particularly effective in increasing the number of Web of Science citations (β = 14.1, SE = 1.9, P < 0.001) and social media exposure (β = 13.3, SE = 6.1, P = 0.030) after adjusting for journal IFs and topics. Conclusion GAs are effective in increasing IFs of journals in the field of gastroenterology and hepatology, as well as increasing citations and social media exposure of individual articles.

Solid pseudopapillary neoplasm (SPN) of the pancreas is considered a low-malignant neoplasm witha good prognosis. However, 5% to 15% of patients with SPNs develop metastatic disease, mostcommonly in the liver. Metastatic hepatic malignancies that show pseudocystic features are rare.Here we describe the case of a middle-aged female with a cystic liver metastasis from SPN. To thebest of our knowledge, SPN with a single cystic liver metastasis has not been described, althoughthese tumours frequently undergo haemorrhagic-cystic degeneration. Thus, in these patients themarked cystic change could be misinterpreted as a benign lesion.

The prevalence and progression of non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) is mediated via several factors correlating with hepatic necroinflammation (adipokines/cytokines). This study was performed to analyze the level of inflammatory markers according to the presence of NAFLD and to identify related nutritional factors. A total of 80 adults were classified into 2 groups (healthy and NAFLD), and their body composition, blood tests, and eating habits were evaluated. In addition, inflammatory markers (adiponectin, high-sensitivity C-reactive protein [CRP], and tumor necrosis factor-alpha [TNF-α]), nutrient intake status, and dietary quality were compared. The quality of diet was assessed according to the nutrient adequacy ratio and the mean adequacy ratio (MAR). The NAFLD group had a higher body mass index (p < 0.001) than the healthy group and also carried significantly higher CRP levels (p < 0.001) but lower adiponectin (p = 0.001). TNF-α levels increased significantly with fatty liver grade (p = 0.023). The NAFLD group showed significantly higher intake of energy, carbohydrates, iron, sodium, vitamin A and saturated fatty acids, but significantly lower intake of zinc and vitamin E than the healthy group. The MAR values were slightly higher in the NAFLD group but without any significant difference. The levels of adiponectin and vitamin E showed a significant inverse correlation (p < 0.05). Nutritional management of NAFLD patients is important, and the intake of antioxidant and anti-inflammatory nutrients such as zinc and vitamin E should be emphasized.

Transarterial chemoembolization (TACE) is a useful treatment option for hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). TACE can particularly be used as a treatment for localized HCC, where surgical resection is impossible due to decreased liver function. However, TACE is associated with several complications, including vascular complications, liver failure, non-target embolization, infection, and death. The main risk factor for complications after TACE is decreased liver function. There have been only few reports of brain abscesses after TACE that are difficult to be distinguished from hepatic encephalopathy. Here, we report a rare case of brain abscess caused by Klebsiella pneumoniae that occurred after TACE.

The prevalence and progression of non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) is mediated via several factors correlating with hepatic necroinflammation (adipokines/cytokines). This study was performed to analyze the level of inflammatory markers according to the presence of NAFLD and to identify related nutritional factors. A total of 80 adults were classified into 2 groups (healthy and NAFLD), and their body composition, blood tests, and eating habits were evaluated. In addition, inflammatory markers (adiponectin, high-sensitivity C-reactive protein [CRP], and tumor necrosis factor-alpha [TNF-α]), nutrient intake status, and dietary quality were compared. The quality of diet was assessed according to the nutrient adequacy ratio and the mean adequacy ratio (MAR). The NAFLD group had a higher body mass index (p < 0.001) than the healthy group and also carried significantly higher CRP levels (p < 0.001) but lower adiponectin (p = 0.001). TNF-α levels increased significantly with fatty liver grade (p = 0.023). The NAFLD group showed significantly higher intake of energy, carbohydrates, iron, sodium, vitamin A and saturated fatty acids, but significantly lower intake of zinc and vitamin E than the healthy group. The MAR values were slightly higher in the NAFLD group but without any significant difference. The levels of adiponectin and vitamin E showed a significant inverse correlation (p < 0.05). Nutritional management of NAFLD patients is important, and the intake of antioxidant and anti-inflammatory nutrients such as zinc and vitamin E should be emphasized.