BACKGROUND Portal hypertension is one of the serious complications of cirrhosis of liver leading to unwanted life-threatening variceal bleeding. Loss of liver architecture and fibrosis lead to increased resistance to blood flow through portal vein causing portal hypertension and ultimately leading to ascites, oesophageal varices and splenomegaly. The aim of the study is to find out correlation of portal vein diameter and splenic size with oesophageal varices in cirrhosis of liver. MATERIALS AND METHODS A descriptive study was conducted in Department of Medicine of SCB Medical College, Cuttack and consecutively 50 adult patients of cirrhosis of liver were included in the study. Ultrasonography was done in all patients to measure splenic size and portal vein diameter. Upper GI endoscopy was done in all to record oesophageal varices. RESULTS Out of 50 patients, 34 (68%) had oesophageal varices of various grades and 16 (32%) had no varices. Average portal vein diameter of patients with oesophageal varices was 13.46 ± 0.98 mm and that of patients without varices was 10.91 ± 0.65 mm (p=0.03). Average splenic size in patients with oesophageal varices was 14.7± 0.82 cm and that of patients without varices was 12.2 ± 1.01 cm (p=0.007). Portal vein diameter and splenic size were increased in patients with oesophageal varices than patients without varices.

BACKGROUNDThyroid hormones are involved in lipid metabolism, insulin resistance and regulation of bodyweight. There are inconclusive data regarding substantial involvement of hypothyroidism in non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD).The aim of this study is to evaluate the prevalence of NAFLD in hypothyroidism.

Purpose: The retinal involvement of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) is a novel idea about a possible correlation between retinal nerve fiber layer (RNFL) thickness in different spectra of ALS patients. Finding the association of RNFL with disease duration and severity will help identify a novel noninvasive biomarker. Methods: The study was designed as a cross-sectional study and was conducted with a suitable proforma. We included the ALS cases based on the revised El Escorial criteria. Healthy controls were age and gender matched. We used the revised ALS functional rating scale (ALSFRS-R) to assess the operational status of the patients. We measured RNFL thickness in the four quadrants with spectral-domain optical coherence tomography (OCT) and analyzed it. Results: We included 30 cases (60 eyes) and 10 healthy controls (20 eyes) having a mean (standard deviation [SD]) age of 49.5 (11.1) years with a median of 50 years, and a majority of them (65%) were middle aged (between 41 and 60 years). We found statistically significant differences in RNFL thicknesses between ALS patients and healthy controls. On segmental analysis, the right eye superior and nasal quadrants and the left eye superior, inferior, and nasal quadrants were significantly affected, along with a gross asymmetry found between the left and right eyes among ALS patients. There was a significant decrease in average RNFL thickness in definite ALS patients than probable ALS patients, with significantly reduced average RNFL thickness in moderate to severe ALS patients. On correlation analysis, disease duration showed a good negative correlation with bilateral average RNFL thickness, and the ALSFRS-R score demonstrated a good positive correlation with bilateral average RNFL thickness, which was statistically significant. Thus, a reduced bilateral RNFL thickness is associated with a decreased ALSFRS-R score. Conclusion: The retinal changes can serve as a marker for diagnosing and monitoring patients with ALS.