Alcoholic liver disease, new aspects of an old problem.

In the therapy of alcoholic liver disease, two recent trends deserve consideration, one is the role of immunologic mechanisms and the other is the effect of nutrition. In various double blind studies no improved survival of corticosteroid treated patients with alcoholic hepatitis has been found. Intravenous hyperalimentation with amino acid solution combined with peroral feeding seemed, however, to have a beneficial effect in alcoholic hepatitis.