A prospective, double-blind controlled pilot study in 20 subjects of the efficacy of glucocorticosteroids in the treatment of severe, life-threatening, alcoholic hepatitis failed to demonstrate a significantly improved survival in the treated group. The presence of cirrhosis with superimposed hepatitis seemed to be associated with a much graver immediate outcome, whereas a prothrombin time that permitted a pretreatment needle liver biopsy clearly selected the patients with an improved prognosis. The Australia antigen was absent from the serums of all 16 patients in whom it was sought.
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Porter et al. (1971) studied this question.
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