Histopathological features of liver disease in hospitalized Ethiopian patients.

A retrospective analysis of 860 liver biopsy specimens processed by the Department of Pathology of Addis Ababa University was made to determine the frequencies of the various histopathological lesions seen among Ethiopians admitted with liver disease. One hundred fifty six (18.1%) of the specimens were inadequate for precise pathological diagnosis. Liver cirrhosis accounted for 25.4% (179) and primary hepatocellular carcinoma for 19.2% (135) of all diagnoses. Porphyria cutanea tarda was diagnosed in 12.4% (87) of the biopsy specimens. Hepatitis, metastases to the liver, and hepatic granulomata were present in 8.8% (62), 4.5% (32) and 2.8% (20) of the specimens respectively. In countries like Ethiopia where autopsies and diagnostic facilities are limited, and liver diseases prevalent, percutaneous needle biopsy is a useful procedure to define the histopathology of different types of liver disease.