Thirty four autopsy cases of so-called fulminant hepatitis were collected, and pathological changes of various organs were observed, grossly and histologically, mainly from the comparative view point with the hepatic changes. According to the degree of hepatic cell necrosis, a classification into four stages was used; (I) Liver with mild necrosis, (II) severe necrosis, (III) complete destruction, and (IV) beginning of regeneration of the parenchymal cells.
This classification was believed to be usable both for clinical and pathological purposes. The weight of the liver increases a little in I, continues to decreasc in II and III, and shows slight recovery in IV. That of the kidney was always above the normal lebel.
Various striking changes of other organs than the liver were found as follows, although their incidence and grade were varying from case to case; 1) Alimentary tract: Hemorrhage and inflammatory change, 2) Pancreas: Simple, acute pancreatitis with occasional cases of severe necrosis, 3) Kidney: Severe cloudy swelling due to tubular fatty degeneration and/or biliary nephrosis, 4) Lung: Hemorrhage and hemorrhagic pneumonia, 5) Myocardium: Interstitial edema and degeneration of various kinds of the myocardium, occasionally with inflammatory processes, 6) Spleen and lymph node: Necrotic or exudative change due to acute circulatory disturbance, and some inflammatory changes, 7) Collection of ascites, 8) Brain: Edematous swelling.
A tendency that these changes became severer in degree and higher in incidence according to the progression of hepatic necrosis was observed. They were believed to be caused by various factors such as acute circulatory disturbance, hemorrhagic diathesis, increase of portal pressure, outflow of the hepatic necrotic substance into the blood, and generalized intoxication partly due to infection and partly due to hepatic insufficiency, etc. all of which should result from the main disease, acute or subacute liver necrosis. In other words, so-called fulminant hepatitis is a systemic or generalized disease, which is believed to be caused not only by hepatic disturbance itself, but also by severe, various changes associating and occurring in other organs. Treatment as well as research of this disease should be carried out along this line, in future.
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