[Multifactorial hepatopathy in a patient with biliopancreatic diversion]

The Scopinaro surgical technique for obesity consists of a partial distal gastrectomy with biliopancreatic diversion and cholecystectomy. It is an effective procedure in the control of the body weight but disrupts the physiological gut-liver axis. We report the case of a patient who developed liver cirrhosis with a multifactorial pathogenesis following antiobesity surgery according to Scopinaro and discuss the pathogenesis of the liver damage on the basis of our present understanding of alcoholic and nonalcoholic steatohepatitis. A 41-year-old male patient presented with ascites due to cryptogenic liver cirrhosis. Owing to morbid obesity, he had undergone antiobesity surgery according to Scopinaro when he was 25 years old. The procedure was effective and the patient lost about 40 kg of weight but manifested chronic diarrhea in the postoperative course. During the following 15 years, the patient continued to assume 100 g alcohol/day and did not turn up for clinical evaluation. Signs and symptoms of liver failure appeared in May 2000. After surgical correction of biliopancreatic diversion and abstinence from alcohol the hepatocellular function partially recovered and the patient regained his subjective complete well-being. The multifactorial pathogenesis of the liver disease observed in our patient included obesity, antrectomy, heavy alcohol consumption, bacterial overgrowth, and protein malnutrition.