There is a need for head to head comparison of corticosteroid and pentoxifylline in severe alcoholic hepatitis. At the time the current study was designed (2008), corticosteroid was first-line treatment for severe alcoholic hepatitis. This study was designed to demonstrate that the effect of pentoxifylline was similar (i.e., not inferior) to that of prednisolone, an active form of prednisone. The aim of the present study was thus to compare the effects of pentoxifylline and prednisolone on the short-term mortality.