Structural changes of blood vessels and bile ducts in pathology

: Examination of 305 liver specimens of human cadavers of various age and study of the findings of intravital contrast examination of the duct and vascular system in 130 patients aged from 22 to 84 years revealed changes in the architectonics of the vessels and bile ducts in pathological processes. In healthy individuals the enlargement of the length and diameter of the vessels and ducts and increase in the depth of distribution of their intrahepatic branches from the surface of the liver ware regular in character and depended on the size of the liver and the age; they were marked by a straight linear course without sharp bends and dilatations. The length, diameter, the angles at the junction, and the direction of the course of the vessels and ducts changed sharply in inflammatory processes in the liver and bile ducts, focal lesions, and cirrhosis. Irregular enlargement of the diameter of the vessels and ducts and their marked tortousness were noted. The changes in the duct system were in direct dependence on the pressure in the biliary tract, the higher the pressure, the greater was the dilatation of the ducts at all levels.