Hepatic Encephalopathy
Hepatic Encephalopathy (HE), sometimes referred to as portosystemic encephalopathy or PSE, is a condition that causes temporary worsening of brain function in people with advanced liver disease. When your liver is damaged it can no longer remove toxic substances from your blood. These toxins build up and can travel through your body until they reach your brain, causing mental and physical symptoms of HE.
Explore this Hepatic Encephalopathy Information Center by clicking through to the Diagnosis, Treatment, Support and Caregivers landing pages where you’ll find more information to help you manage Hepatic Encephalopathy.
Diagnosing Hepatic Encephalopathy
There is no specific test used to diagnose HE. A Hepatic Encephalopathy diagnosis is based on a combination of three things:
- Your medical history
- Your symptoms
- A thorough clinical exam by your healthcare provider
Treating Hepatic Encephalopathy
Being confronted with a diagnosis of HE can be overwhelming and because HE is a complicated condition, a multidisciplinary approach is often required to manage it. Learn more about treating Hepatic Encephalopathy.
Support for Patients with Hepatic Encephalopathy
If you’re living with HE or caring for a loved one with HE you’ll likely need emotional, physical, or financial support at certain points in your journey. Learn how and where you can get that support – from finding resources to help pay for the cost of medications to learning how to talk about your diagnosis with friends and family.
Caregivers of Patients with Hepatic Encephalopathy
If you are the caregiver for someone with HE, it’s likely you’re not completely new to this role as your loved one has probably been living with some form of chronic liver disease and cirrhosis for some time now. Learn more about caring for patients with Hepatic Encephalopathy.
Facts at-a-Glance
- Hepatic Encephalopathy is a brain disorder that develops in some individuals with liver disease.
- Approximately 70% of individuals with cirrhosis may develop symptoms of Hepatic Encephalopathy.
- In some cases, Hepatic Encephalopathy is a short-term problem that can be corrected. It may also occur as part of a chronic problem from liver disease that gets worse over time.
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Search for a Clinical Trial
Clinical trials are research studies that test how well new medical approaches work in people. Before an experimental treatment can be tested on human subjects in a clinical trial, it must have shown benefit in laboratory testing or animal research studies. The most promising treatments are then moved into clinical trials, with the goal of identifying new ways to safely and effectively prevent, screen for, diagnose, or treat a disease.
Speak with your doctor about the ongoing progress and results of these trials to get the most up-to-date information on new treatments. Participating in a clinical trial is a great way to contribute to curing, preventing and treating liver disease and its complications.
Start your search here to find clinical trials that need people like you.
Last updated on July 20th, 2022 at 01:04 pm