Ammonia and endogenous benzodiazepine-like compounds in the pathogenesis of hepatic encephalopathy

Scandinavian Journal of Gastroenterology
I VenturiniM L Zeneroli

Abstract

Ammonia and endogenous benzodiazepines (BDZs) are two of the most important agents among those taken into consideration in the pathogenesis of hepatic encephalopathy (HE). Venous ammonia and endogenous BDZs sera levels were assayed in 58 liver cirrhosis patients (34 male, 24 female) free of commercial BDZs. Endogenous BDZs were measured by binding assay after high-performance liquid chromatography purification. Ammonia was assessed by colorimetric test. Endogenous BDZs and ammonia were significantly higher in Child-Pugh class C than in class B and class A (P < 0.05), correlating to the severity of the liver dysfunction but not with the degree of HE. A significant difference, in fact, was noted between degree 0 (no HE) versus III-IV of HE (P < 0.05), but not between degrees I-II versus III-IV. Regression analysis performed to find a correlation between the ammonia and BDZ levels in HE resulted negative. Clinical evidence is provided in cirrhotic patients that ammonia and endogenous BDZ levels do not correlate with each other in the outcome of HE.

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Citations

Sep 17, 2011·La Revue de médecine interne·N ThiercelinA Plat
May 11, 2006·Psychosomatics·Catherine C CroneAndrea DiMartini
Mar 15, 2003·The American Journal of Medicine·Victor Wang, Sammy Saab
Sep 11, 2002·Liver·Sambit SenRajiv Jalan
Dec 31, 2005·Metabolic Brain Disease·Samir Ahboucha, Roger F Butterworth
Nov 9, 2002·Alimentary Pharmacology & Therapeutics·S SenR Jalan
Jun 10, 2010·Expert Review of Gastroenterology & Hepatology·Mark J W McPhailSimon D Taylor-Robinson
Sep 7, 2004·Liver Transplantation : Official Publication of the American Association for the Study of Liver Diseases and the International Liver Transplantation Society·Sambit SenRajiv Jalan
Jun 7, 2008·Veterinary Clinical Pathology·Robert GoggsDez Hughes
Oct 5, 2010·European Journal of Pediatrics·Naresh P ShanmugamAnil Dhawan
Dec 29, 2020·World Journal of Gastroenterology : WJG·Zhi-Peng YaoHong-Liang Wang

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