Biomaterial Database

Improvement in cognitive functioning of alcoholics following orthotopic liver transplantation. 1991

A M Arria, and R E Tarter, and T E Starzl, and D H Van Thiel

Department of Psychiatry, University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine, PA 15213.

Cognitive functioning in alcoholic cirrhotics before and 1 year following orthotopic liver transplantation was compared with age- and sex-matched normal subjects. The alcoholic group improved significantly following transplantation on tests measuring psychomotor, visuopractic and abstracting abilities whereas the performance of normal controls remained virtually unchanged. In contrast, memory capacity in alcoholics with cirrhosis did not statistically improve following successful transplantation. Further investigation, using more sophisticated measures of memory function, are required to determine whether memory deficits are either associated with alcohol neurotoxicity or an irreversible component of hepatic encephalopathy. These findings suggest that a reversible hepatic encephalopathy underlies many of the neuropsychologic deficits observed in cirrhotic alcoholics and can be ameliorated following successful liver transplantation.

UI	MeSH Term	Description	Entries
D008104	Liver Cirrhosis, Alcoholic	FIBROSIS of the hepatic parenchyma due to chronic excess ALCOHOL DRINKING.	Alcoholic Cirrhosis,Hepatic Cirrhosis, Alcoholic,Alcoholic Hepatic Cirrhosis,Alcoholic Liver Cirrhosis
D008297	Male		Males
D009483	Neuropsychological Tests	Tests designed to assess neurological function associated with certain behaviors. They are used in diagnosing brain dysfunction or damage and central nervous system disorders or injury.	Aphasia Tests,Cognitive Test,Cognitive Testing,Cognitive Tests,Memory for Designs Test,Neuropsychological Testing,AX-CPT,Behavioral Assessment of Dysexecutive Syndrome,CANTAB,Cambridge Neuropsychological Test Automated Battery,Clock Test,Cognitive Function Scanner,Continuous Performance Task,Controlled Oral Word Association Test,Delis-Kaplan Executive Function System,Developmental Neuropsychological Assessment,Hooper Visual Organization Test,NEPSY,Neuropsychologic Tests,Neuropsychological Test,Paced Auditory Serial Addition Test,Repeatable Battery for the Assessment of Neuropsychological Status,Rey-Osterrieth Complex Figure,Symbol Digit Modalities Test,Test of Everyday Attention,Test, Neuropsychological,Tests, Neuropsychological,Tower of London Test,Neuropsychologic Test,Test, Cognitive,Testing, Cognitive,Testing, Neuropsychological,Tests, Cognitive
D011183	Postoperative Complications	Pathologic processes that affect patients after a surgical procedure. They may or may not be related to the disease for which the surgery was done, and they may or may not be direct results of the surgery.	Complication, Postoperative,Complications, Postoperative,Postoperative Complication
D011594	Psychometrics	Assessment of psychological variables by the application of mathematical procedures.	Psychometric
D011939	Mental Recall	The process whereby a representation of past experience is elicited.	Recall, Mental
D005260	Female		Females
D005500	Follow-Up Studies	Studies in which individuals or populations are followed to assess the outcome of exposures, procedures, or effects of a characteristic, e.g., occurrence of disease.	Followup Studies,Follow Up Studies,Follow-Up Study,Followup Study,Studies, Follow-Up,Studies, Followup,Study, Follow-Up,Study, Followup
D006501	Hepatic Encephalopathy	A syndrome characterized by central nervous system dysfunction in association with LIVER FAILURE, including portal-systemic shunts. Clinical features include lethargy and CONFUSION (frequently progressing to COMA); ASTERIXIS; NYSTAGMUS, PATHOLOGIC; brisk oculovestibular reflexes; decorticate and decerebrate posturing; MUSCLE SPASTICITY; and bilateral extensor plantar reflexes (see REFLEX, BABINSKI). ELECTROENCEPHALOGRAPHY may demonstrate triphasic waves. (From Adams et al., Principles of Neurology, 6th ed, pp1117-20; Plum & Posner, Diagnosis of Stupor and Coma, 3rd ed, p222-5)	Encephalopathy, Hepatic,Portosystemic Encephalopathy,Encephalopathy, Hepatocerebral,Encephalopathy, Portal-Systemic,Encephalopathy, Portosystemic,Fulminant Hepatic Failure with Cerebral Edema,Hepatic Coma,Hepatic Stupor,Hepatocerebral Encephalopathy,Portal-Systemic Encephalopathy,Coma, Hepatic,Comas, Hepatic,Encephalopathies, Hepatic,Encephalopathies, Hepatocerebral,Encephalopathies, Portal-Systemic,Encephalopathies, Portosystemic,Encephalopathy, Portal Systemic,Hepatic Comas,Hepatic Encephalopathies,Hepatic Stupors,Hepatocerebral Encephalopathies,Portal Systemic Encephalopathy,Portal-Systemic Encephalopathies,Portosystemic Encephalopathies,Stupor, Hepatic,Stupors, Hepatic
D006801	Humans	Members of the species Homo sapiens.	Homo sapiens,Man (Taxonomy),Human,Man, Modern,Modern Man