Oxygen supply to the liver in patients with alcoholic liver disease assessed by organ-reflectance spectrophotometry.

In the present study we have investigated hepatic hemodynamics in patients with alcoholic liver disease using reflectance spectrophotometry and the hydrogen clearance method. Analysis of 38 cases has shown that estimated regional hepatic-tissue hemoglobin concentration, expressed as a difference in absorbance between 569 and 650 nm (delta Er569-650), decreased significantly with progress of fibrosis or fat accumulation in the liver. This suggests that the relative compression of the vascular compartment is due to the progress of alcoholic liver disease. Estimated hepatic hemoglobin concentration also correlated positively with prothrombin time, and negatively with serum gamma-globulin level and 15-min retention rate of indocyanine green. The difference in absorbance between 569 and 650 nm obtained by reflectance spectrophotometry was positively correlated with the regional hepatic blood flow as measured by the hydrogen clearance method. Thus, it is concluded that the estimated regional hepatic-tissue hemoglobin concentration decreases with progress of fibrosis and fat accumulation in the liver, and that this decreased oxygen supply to the liver may have an important role in the progress of alcoholic liver disease.