[Recovery after treatment for cirrhotic ascites : a study of 90 cases. Frequency of arterial hypertension (author's transl)].

Thirty patients with alcoholic cirrhosis, ascitic during 13.6 +/- 13 months (mean +/- S.D.) were cured of ascites and followed up during 2 to 9 years (4.3 +/- 2.7 years). Twenty six were compared with a same number of cirrhotics, matched for age and sex, who died during the year after the first admission. Many biological data show statistical difference. Nevertheless no valuable prognosis can be predicted in an individual case. The clinical improvement is associated with major, sometimes total biological recovery. Other complications of cirrhosis (gastro-intestinal bleeding, hepatoma) may occur (7 cases with 5 deaths) or alcoholic hepatitis if alcohol withdrawal is stopped (3 cases, 2 deaths). Some associated diseases look unexpectedly frequent: diabetes (4 cases), obesity (9), nodular lipomatosis (14 cases) whose frequency looks higher than that can be calculated for a similar group of healthy subjects.