Abstract
UDCA was administered at 300 mg/day for at least 7 days before cholecystectomy to 30 of 60 patients with gall stones in the gallbladder. The other 30 patients received no UDCA and served as control.
1. Total bile acid (TBA) and phospholipid levels increased in the UDCA group, while cholesterol levels increased in the untreated group, but there were no significant differences between the two groups.
2. TBA levels in peripheral and portal blood samples and bile samples taken from the gallbladder during surgery increased in the UDCA group, with the UDCA/TBA ratio being 50.8%,35.7% and 31.9%, respectively, in these samples. These ratios were significantly higher than those in the untreated group (less than 5 %).
3. Serum GOT, GPT and ALP decreased significantly after surgery in the UDCA group. T. Bil., LAP and γGTP were also suppressed at lower levels than in the untreatcd control group, although differences were not significant.
These findings suggest that preoperative treatment with UDCA changes the bile acid composition in bile and blood and favorably affects postoperative hepatic function.
