[The behavior of albumin in acute and chronic liver damage. III. Intrahepatic and serum albumin concentrations in human liver diseases].

In 305 patients examined by liver biopsy albumin and the entire soluble protein in the liver puncture as well as albumin in the serum were estimated quantitatively. A significant decrease of the serum albumin level in active cirrhoses and biliary liver damages confirmed the importance of the hypalbuminaemia as facultative symptom of a liver damage. The lacking specifity was emphasized by the low albumin serum concentrations in malignomas and after the intake of contraceptive hormones. The hypalbuminaemia and the increased content of soluble liver protein in the bioptic material might enrich the diagnostics of the activity in cirrhoses. The diagnostic value of the decrease of the relative proportion of albumin is low, since of all liver diseases examined the active cirrhosis alone was accompanied by a significant decrease. The estimation of the albumin content in the bioptically got liver tissue had in contrast to the animal experiment no diagnostic value for liver diseases.