Free serotonin (5-HT) levels in Egyptian patients with esophageal and fundal varices

Background: Serotonin appears to be a central physiologic mediator of many gastrointestinal functions and a mediator of the brain–gut connection. Aim: The aim of this study was to determine concentrations of free serotonin in plasma in patients with and without esophageal and fundal varices. Participants and methods: Patients diagnosed with stigmata of chronic liver disease (history, clinical, laboratory, and radiological findings – e.g. jaundice, lower limb edema, hepatomegaly, and splenomegaly) and presenting with gastrointestinal symptoms were included in the study. After upper gastointestinal endoscopy, patients were divided into two groups: group I included 30 patients with liver cirrhosis complicated with varices and group II included 30 patients with liver cirrhosis who did not have varices. Thirty healthy participants served as the control group. All patients were subjected to history taking, clinical examination, laboratory tests, abdominal ultrasound, and upper gastrointestinal tract endoscopy (for group I and II). Plasma free serotonin was measured by the ELISA test. Results: All groups were age-matched and sex-matched. Estimation of plasma free serotonin showed a highly statistically significant difference between groups (F=59.32, P
Source: Egyptian Liver Journal - Category: Gastroenterology Tags: Original articles Source Type: research