Abstract
Hepatic encephalopathy (HE) is a severe complication of liver disease, describing
a spectrum of neurological and psychiatric abnormalities ranging from subclinical
alterations to coma. HE is the leading cause for hospital readmission, intensive care
treatment, and mortality in patients with chronic liver disease. The complex and multifaceted
pathogenesis is not yet fully understood, but hypotheses focus on ammonia and systemic
inflammation, which are the main targets for currently available therapies in clinical
practice. Nevertheless, the remaining high clinical relevance and healthcare burden
of this syndrome underlines the emergence for further unraveling the full spectrum
of pathomechanisms, as this provides the basis for the development of novel, highly
targeted therapies. In this review, the most recent literature about current and future
therapies for HE, relevant for intensive care management, will be discussed.
Keywords
hepatic encephalopathy - pathogenesis - classification - diagnosing - treatment
