Clinico Pathological Observation of the Liver in SHRSP

Abstract

There was a closer relationship between the heart weight and the liver weight than between the heart weight and the brain weight in old SHRSP. However, in SHRSP heart weight to liver weight ratios were still greater than those in WK, indicating the cardiac hypertrophy is a more dominant characteristics in hypertensive state. Hypertrophied hearts of more than 2.2g in weight, all with cerebral stroke, corresponded also to the heaviest group of the liver in old SHRSP. Pathological examinations of the liver showed that the characteristic pathological finding in old SHRSP was the fibrous thickning of the wall of central vein (central sclerosis) and a tendency toward fibrosis of the liver. Laboratory tests of 'very old' SHRSP showed increase in (a)BUN, (b)GOT and LDH and (c)GPT, which corresponded to (a)hypertensive renal vascular lesions (arterionecrosis, glomerular fibrosis and arteriosclerosis), (b)myocardial lesions (infarction and extensive perivascular fibrosis) and (s)liver damage due to congestion.These experimental studies indicate that cardiac hypertrophy in old SHR is closely related with the congestion of the liver which is also hemodynamically over-loaded in long-standing hypertensive state.