[Possibility of early diagnosis of hepatic fibrosis in chronic alcoholics determining the N-terminal peptide of type-III procollagen].

The authors examined the behaviour of sP-III-P and other parameters in 40 patients affected by alcoholic liver disease (20 of whom with steatosis, 10 with steatofibrosis, 10 with liver cirrhosis) and at the same time in a group of non drinking controls. The levels of sP-III-P appeared significantly increased in the patients with steato-fibrosis and even more so in those with liver cirrhosis, while in those with steatosis the increase was insignificant. The gamma-globulins showed similar behaviour while serum albumin appeared proportionally reduced in the cases in which sP-III-P and gamma-globulins showed a greater increase. The authors believe that the study of sP-III-P is valuable in the follow-up of patients with alcoholic liver disease and in particular in chronic alcoholism to reveal the presence of an increased fibrogenesis.