Two psychological tests, WAIS and Trail Making Test, were administered to fourteen patients with chronic liver disease, mainly consisting of cirrhosis.
In WAIS, control group revealed better results, especially in Performance tests, than the patients with chronic liver disease. Groups of patients with abnormal EEG, history of impairment of consciousness and decompensated liver function showed worse results than the groups of those without them.
No significant difference was observed in the results of Trail Making Test between control group and the patients with chronic liver disease. However, the lower scores in Trail Making Test were obtained in the groups with abnormal EEG, history of impairment of consciousness and decompensated liver function than the groups without them.
Between the groups with and without abnormal EEG, the significant differences were observed in Part I, Part II and Part I+II.

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Using scintiphotosplenoportography which permits a clear visualization of portal circulation by injecting ^99mTcO₄^- into the spleen, quantitative studies on portal circulation were performed. Thirty five patients with various disorders were studied. The scintillation camera employed was a Picker Dynacamera system. The velocity of portal flow was calculated by estimating the time for ^99mTcO₄^- to travel a known distance between the two areas of interest over the splenic vein. The spleen to liver time was calculated by subtracting the peak activity time over the spleen from that over the liver. The velocity of portal flow and the spleen to liver time were 9.78cm/sec, 2.67sec in patients without liver disease, 7.80 cm/sec, 3.45sec in patients with chronic hepatitis, and 4.39cm/sec, 4.72sec in cirrhosis respectively. Consequently, in patients with cirrhosis the velocity of portal flow was reduced and the spleen to liver time was prolonged significantly.

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Histological changes of the gallbladder and the liver in rabbits fed by 1% dihydrocholesterol (DHC) for 15 days were observed. Concrements were produced in the gallbladder after 11 days of DHC administration. Hypersecretion of mucus and flattening of the epithelial folds with hypertrophy of the muscle bundle in the gallbladder wall were remarkable, especially after eighth day. Cellular infiltration in the Glisson's sheath in the liver was also observed mainly at the same period. Those histological changes should seem to result from toxic effect of DHC to the gallbladder and the liver.
During 6-10th day, cholesterol and phospholipid levels in serum decreased whereas those concentrations in the liver increased. Cholesterol levels in gallbladder bile showed tendency of decreasing during 11-15th day. It is still not clear that such changes of the lipids have relation directly to the formation of gallstones in rabbits fed 1% DHC.

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CE14 (L), hydrolized cold human placenta, contains various amino acids. As the action of L, lipotropic function, accelerating activity on tissue respiration, action promoted hepatic regeneration, and others were already reported by the experimental studies. The present study was to know whether or not L was an effective drug for the treatment of chronic liver diseases. The patients were divided in two groups at random in double blind method. Saline solution was used as placebo. In group 1, the injection of L was performed for two weeks. After that the placebo was used for two weeks, and the study was repeated once more. Group 2 received the injection of placebo at first. For the next two weeks they were injected L. After that the process was done once more the same as group 1. The liver function tests were examined every two weeks, and their levels before and after two weeks were compared. GOT and GPT in both groups decreased in the period of the administration of L and it was statistically significant. In contrast, no significant decreases of GOT and GPT were obtained in the placebo period of both groups. Consequently, it is suggested that L is effective in patients with chronic liver diseases.

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In order to clarify the effect of urease inhibitor, acetohydroxamic acid (AHA), caprylohydroxamic acid (CHA) and nicotinohydroxamic acid (NHA) on hyperammoniemia, dogs with Eck fistula and rats with CCl₄ hepatic damage associated with hyperammoniemia were use
Clinically, oral administration of CHA was made in 8 cirrhotic patients with hyperammoniemia. The blood ammonia decreased significantly after the oral or intravenous administration of urease inhibitors in the experimental animals, and the decrease of blood ammonia was noted immediately after an intravenous administration. By the oral or intravenous administration of AHA or CHA in experimental rats, hyperammoniemia improved after the decrease of mucosal urease activities. The blood ammonia decreased in 5 out of 8 cirrhotic patients with hyperammoniemia. The effect of urease inhibitors on hyperammoniemia is thought to be systemic and to be brought about by the inhibition of intestinal mucosal urease activities.

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Three cases of the retroperitoneal emphysema were described as a rare complication of the laparoscopy. Two of them complained of dyspnea and showed severe subcutaneous emphysema. Oxygen inhalation was needed. One of three had no complaints but had the evidence of retroperitoneal gas on the plane abdominal X-ray films. This kind or complication of the laparoscopy had been reported only one case both of the large collections of Brühl and of Yamakawa.
We concluded writing with need of some technical and instrumental improvements of the artificial pneumoperitoneum.

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This is a report of a 78 year old male with chronic schistosomiasis and myeloma, who exhibited marked, generalized calcification of the liver in a plain abdominal radiograph. The film looked somewhat like liver thorotrastosis. Autopsy disclosed marked calcification of numerous Schistosoma japonicum ova deposited in the portal tract and of surrouding fibrous tissue. No similar cases have as yet been described in the literature.

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Two autopsy cases of hepatoma with Mallory bodies were reported. The first case (52 years old man) was alcoholics but the second case (59 years old man) had never used alcohol in any form. Histologically, hepatoma of both cases were well differentiated type associated with portal cirrosis and numerous hyaline inclusions were found in the hepatoma cells. Morphological and histochemical examination revealed that these hyaline inclusions were identical with Mallory's alcoholic hyaline.

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