[Cirrhogenic hepatitis due to perhexiline maleate: general review based upon one new case with ultrastructural study (author's transl)]

The authors describe a case of cirrhogenic hepatitis due to Pexid which was given for 8 months at 400 mg/day for a severe angina pectoris. We find here the anatomo-clinical profile of perhexiline maleate hepatiits already described in approximately 20 cases. There was a cirrhogenic evolution in our case as in 5 others : but here cirrhosis was revealing and seems stabilized since the treatment was stopped. The cirrhogenic evolution could be due to a cumulative effect of the drug and/or to an immuno-allergic mechanism as in alcoholic cirrhosis which is very similar, especially from an anatomical point of view. However cirrhogenic hepatitis differs by a characteristic lysosomal overload : brown pigment under microscopic observation and lipolysosomes with in some cases a lamellar structure under electron microscopic observation. The prescription of such a drug should be limited to cases of refractory angina pectoris and needed a regular clinical and biological survey.

Production de vapeur d'uranium par pulvérisation cathodique dans une cathode creuse: efficacités relatives des gaz Ne, Ar, Kr et concentration à l'état (5)L(0)(6)

We have investigated the production of uranium vapors in the (5)L(0)(6) ground state using a sputtering technique. We have also compared the performance of the Ne, Ar, Kr gases as carrier agents. We have found that the krypton gas gives a maximum yield with minimum energy. Finally the density of U vapors has been found to be of the order of 10(12) atoms cm(-3.).

[Angio-immunoblastic lymphadenopathy]

A report is presented on four cases of angioimmunoblastic lymphadenopathy. In this recently individualized entity, adenomegaly with fever and cutaneous eruption is associated with polyclonal hypergammaglobulinemia and autoimmunization, especially of anti-erythrocytic type. The lymph nodes are homogenized by a lymphoplasmo-immunoblastic granuloma with angiogenesis. The disease could be attributed to hyperplasia of B lymphocytes with a deficit of T cells, which would explain the autoimmunization. It appears in some cases to be triggered by accidents of drug intolerance. Prognosis is poor and the course of the disease is nearly always fatal in the long or short term. It is difficult to ascertain whether prolonged remissions, either spontaneous or therapeutic, can be considered actual cures.

[Acute alcoholic hepatitis]

Acute alcoholic hepatitis is an anatomical (fatty liver with sclerosing hyaline necrosis) and a clinical (hepatomegaly with a variety of symptoms of hepatic failure) entity arising out of chronic alcoholism, and of a typically 'pre-cirrhotic' state. Although fatal in 25% of acute cases due to failure of homeostasis, it often leaves a centrilobular scarring necrosis which in more than 60% of cases progresses to nodular cirrhosis. Continued alcoholism worsens the prognosis. Alcoholic hepatitis may be confused with acute abdominal catastrophes or with a hepatoma. The characteristic Mallory bodies found on liver biopsy are found rarely in non-alcoholic hepatitis. There is no effective treatment for this disease except reduction of alcohol intake; indeed, the disease may become self-perpetuating.

Stimulating effect of neutral proteases on cells in vitro

Some results concerning the stimulatory effect of proteases on lymphocytes and other cells such as Hela cells and fibroblasts are evaluated. Preliminary evidence indicates that such stimulating factors are indeed released from cells during phagocytosis and can be inhibited by aprotinin. The potential role of such proteases in inflammation is discussed.

[Osteonecrosis, alcoholism and liver steatosis]

Ethylism represents at the present time one of the most frequent etiological factors of primitive osteonecrosis of the femoral head. In relation to a case of osteonecrosis of the femoral head associated with multiple bone infarcts in a chronic alcoholic, also presenting recurring jaundice, alcohol-sensitive hyperlipidaemia, and moderate anaemia, the authors review the role of fatty embolisms in the formation of primitive osteonecrosis of the femoral head. These fatty embolisms may be the result of alcohol-induced hyperlipidaemia, possibly an associated pancreatic disorders, or in particular of hepatic steatosis. A systematic histological study of 10 recent unselected cases of primitive osteonecrosis of the femoral head confirmed the extreme frequency of such embolisms (8 cases out of 10).