[Intestinal schistosomiasis. Early hepatic involvement with portal hypertension: study of 5 cases]

Pathological and hemodynamic investigations were performed in 5 canadian patients who had been infected by Schistosoma mansoni four months before in Martinique. Mononuclear cell infiltration of portal tracts was disclosed in all 5 patients; it was associated with eosinophilic infiltration in 3, hepatocellular necrosis in 3, granulomas in 2 and fibrosis in 2. Presinusoidal portal hypertension was demonstrated in 4 out of the 5 patients. These observations suggest that histological changes are constant at this stage after infestation by S. mansoni and could be responsible for the early development of portal hypertension which is classically a late feature of the disease.