Experimental porta-caval anastomosis and motor nerve conduction velocity in the rat.

The influence of portal-systemic shunting on maximal motor nerve conduction velocity (MCV) was analyzed in rats with portacaval shunts. At 3 and 8 weeks after the shunting there was a marked but transient fall in MCV. This was not prevented by colectomy. At 16 weeks the MCV had almost normalized, despite sustained portal-systemic shunting. When examined at 3 weeks postoperatively, MCV was less affected by ischaemia than in control animals. The results favour hepatocellular failure as the more important pathophysiological mechanism in hepatic neuropathy.