Biliary lipid composition in patients with porta cirrhosis of the liver.

Fasting duodenal bile was collected under standardized conditions in 10 male patients with stable portal cirrhosis of the liver and in 12 healthy male controls matched for age, body weight, and serum lipid levels. The proportion of cholesterol, expressed as molar percentage of total biliary lipids, was lower in patients with cirrhosis than in controls (4.6 +/- 0.6 versus 6.4 +/- 0.4 molar %, mean +/- S.E.M.; P less than 0.025), whereas the proportions of bile acids and phospholipids were similar in the two groups. The cholesterol saturation of bile was lower in cirrhotic patients (68 +/- 8%) than in controls (94 +/- 7%; P less than 0.025). The contribution of deoxycholic acid to total bile acids was diminished in cirrhosis and that of chenodeoxycholic acid slightly increased. The results suggest that, in spite of the disturbances of bile acid metabolism generally seen in cirrhosis, such patients are not prone to develop cholesterol gallstones.