Insulin uptake by the human alcoholic cirrhotic liver.

Insulin uptake by the human cirrhotic liver was studied in six patients with Laennec's cirrhosis, and the result was compared with that found in ten control patients with varying diseases affecting the biliary system. All patients had portal catheters for diagnostic purposes. The fractional hepatic uptake of insulin was calculated from the clearance rates for insulin obtained after a constant rate infusion into a peripheral vein and the portal vein in each patient. The fractional hepatic extraction of insulin was 13% +/- 5 in cirrhotic patients and differed significantly from the fractional hepatic extraction found in controls (51% +/- 5;P less than 0.001).