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[Portal hypertensive vasculopathy of splenic artery]
1Department of Surgery, Tongji Hospital, Tongji Medical University, Wuhan 430030.
Objective:
To study the pathological changes of splenic artery wall in portal hypertensive patients.
Methods:
The pathological changes and iNOS activity of splenic artery wall were studied in 21 patients with liver cirrhosis and 15 normal subjects, using light and electron microscope and immunohistochemistry.
Results:
Compared with normal individuals, the splenic artery of cirrhotic patients showed that the intima was thickened, split and broken, and the smooth muscle layer of middle membrane was thicker and migrated to underintima space. In cirrhotic patients, regression, atrophy or hypertrophy and hyperplasia were seen in smooth muscle cells whose contractile phenotype changed to synthetic phenotype as well. iNOS activated obviously. Extracellular matrix increased in the wall, resulting in collagenic and fibrous changes.
Conclusions:
Hemodynamic alteration due to liver cirrhosis induced pathological changes of splenic artery, including the damage to contractile structure and increase of iNOS activity. It is one of the reasons of decrease of artery reaction to contractile vasoactive materials.