Contributed by Randall G. Lee, M.D.
PATIENT HISTORY: Per referral letter, the patient is a 53-year-old female who was noted to have increased liver enzymes five months ago, including alkaline phosphatase in the 500 (later 1000) range, gamma GT of 687, AST of 183, ALT is 150, normal bilirubin, and numerous other tests such as antimitochondrial antibody are negative. An attempt at ERCP was unsuccessful; the first attempt at percutaneous cholangiography showed visualization of a small right lobe duct, but no flow into the main biliary system, and repeat study was reported to show a normal intrahepatic duct system, but a possible choledochocele in the area of the ampulla of Vater. She subsequently underwent a surgical exploration with a dilatation and/or incision of the ampulla. No choledochocele was identified at the time of surgery. Review of outside material.

Final Diagnosis (Case 12)

LIVER, NEEDLE BIOPSY -
  1. MINIMAL PERIPORTAL REACTIVITY WITH DUCTULAR PROLIFERATION AND SCATTERED INFLAMMATORY CELLS.
  2. NO EVIDENCE OF DUCT LOSS OR INJURY.

COMMENT:

The histologic changes are modest but consistent with a low-grade cholestatic process. In conjunction with the clinical data, the differential possibilities would include drug induced liver injury, a reaction to (unsampled) intrahepatic mass lesions, and low grade biliary obstruction such as by bile duct carcinoma or duct strictures.

Previous Biopsies on this Patient:
NONE

TPIS Related Resources:
Knodell Scoring
Liver Transplant Topics


Gross Description - Case 12

The specimen consists of eleven (11) consult slides. No surgical pathology report is received with the specimen.


Microscopic Description - Case 12

The liver biopsy consists largely of subcapsular tissue, but the overall architecture is intact. There is mild sinusoidal dilatation noted immediately beneath the capsular surface, but this is probably artifactual in nature. The portal tracts show very minor changes consisting of slight edema in the periportal zone together with mild ductular reactivity and an occasional scattered neutrophils, eosinophils and lymphocytes. Interlobular bile ducts are essentially unremarkable with no florid duct lesions, duct injury, or duct loss. The lobules are largely unremarkable with only an occasional focal necrosis. Lipofuscin pigment is diffusely prominent across the lobule. Reticulin stain demonstrates normal architecture and no evidence of nodular regeneration or the early hyperplastic changes sometimes seen in early biliary disorders. There are no ground glass cells, cytoplasmic globules, viral inclusions or evidence of steatosis identified.

The changes are very minor, but do point towards a cholestatic process. These features can be seen with injury caused by a number of therapeutic drugs, in the vicinity of mass lesions in the liver, or with low grade biliary obstruction. The latter two possibilities appear to have been largely excluded by the imaging procedures, but careful re-review of these studies might be worthwhile if no other explanation for the patient's liver test abnormalities is forthcoming.


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