Hepatic Encephalopathy: A Key Complication of Portal Hypertension

Liver encephalopathy is defined as a potentially reversible disorder of brain function occurring in patients with portal hypertension on the background of chronic liver disease and characterised by decreased intellectual functions, personality disorders and EEG changes. It is based on decreased hepatic clearance of substances formed in the intestine as a consequence of hepatic cellular insufficiency and due to shunting, as well as impaired amino acid metabolism.