Learn About Autoimmune Hepatitis
View Main Condition: Hepatitis
Autoimmune hepatitis causes inflammation of the liver. It occurs when immune cells mistake the liver's normal cells for harmful invaders and attack them.
Lupoid hepatitis; Chronic active hepatitis
This form of hepatitis is an autoimmune disease. The body's immune system cannot tell the difference between healthy body tissue and harmful, outside substances. The result is an immune response that destroys normal body tissues.
Liver inflammation, or hepatitis, may occur along with other autoimmune diseases. These include:
- Graves disease
- Inflammatory bowel disease
- Rheumatoid arthritis
- Scleroderma
- Sjögren syndrome
- Systemic lupus erythematosus
- Thyroiditis
- Type 1 diabetes
- Ulcerative colitis
Autoimmune hepatitis may occur in family members of people with autoimmune diseases. There may be a genetic cause.
This disease is most common in girls and women.
Symptoms may include:
- Fatigue
- General discomfort, uneasiness, or ill feeling (malaise)
- Itching
- Loss of appetite
- Nausea or vomiting
- Joint pain
- Pale or clay-colored stools
- Dark urine
- Abdominal distention
Absence of menstruation (amenorrhea) may also be a symptom.
You may need prednisone or other corticosteroid medicines to help reduce the inflammation. Azathioprine and 6-mercaptopurine are medicines used to treat other autoimmune disorders. They have also been shown to help people with autoimmune hepatitis. Other medicines are occasionally used. The goal of treatment is to put the disease into remission, and then keep it into remission.
Some people may need a liver transplant.
Ansgar Lohse is a Gastroenterologist in Hamburg, Germany. Mr. Lohse is rated as an Elite expert by MediFind in the treatment of Autoimmune Hepatitis. His top areas of expertise are Autoimmune Hepatitis, Hepatitis, Cholangitis, Liver Transplant, and Hepato-Pancreato-Biliary Surgery.
Michael Manns practices in Hannover, Germany. Mr. Manns is rated as an Elite expert by MediFind in the treatment of Autoimmune Hepatitis. His top areas of expertise are Hepatitis, Hepatitis C, Sclerosing Cholangitis, Liver Transplant, and Endoscopy.
Rush University Medical Group
Nancy Reau is a Hepatologist in Bourbonnais, Illinois. Dr. Reau is rated as an Elite provider by MediFind in the treatment of Autoimmune Hepatitis. Her top areas of expertise are Hepatitis C, Hepatitis, Autoimmune Hepatitis, Cirrhosis, and Liver Transplant.
The outcome varies. Corticosteroid and other medicines may slow the progress of the disease. However, autoimmune hepatitis may advance to cirrhosis. This could require a liver transplant.
Complications may include:
- Cirrhosis
- Side effects from steroids and other medicines
- Hepatocellular carcinoma
- Liver failure
- Bleeding from varices
- Ascites
- Hepatic encephalopathy
Contact your health care provider if you notice symptoms of autoimmune hepatitis.
In most cases, autoimmune hepatitis cannot be prevented. Knowing the risk factors may help you detect and treat the disease early.
Summary: The main objective of this study is to generate diagnosis and therapeutic-decision tools through the identification of molecular causes of PIDs with autoimmunity/inflammation and the variability in disease outcome at the transcriptional level using a combination of omics signatures (transcriptomics, epigenomics, proteomics, metagenomics, metabolomics and lipidomics).
Summary: Research project in which biological material is sampled and health-related personal data is further used and collected. Coded data are used.
Published Date: October 30, 2024
Published By: Jenifer K. Lehrer, MD, Gastroenterologist, Philadelphia, PA. Review provided by VeriMed Healthcare Network. Also reviewed by David C. Dugdale, MD, Medical Director, Brenda Conaway, Editorial Director, and the A.D.A.M. Editorial team.
Czaja AJ. Autoimmune hepatitis. In: Feldman M, Friedman LS, Brandt LJ, eds. Sleisenger and Fordtran's Gastrointestinal and Liver Disease. 11th ed. Philadelphia, PA: Elsevier; 2021:chap 90.
Pawlotsky J-M. Chronic viral and autoimmune hepatitis. In: Goldman L, Cooney KA, eds. Goldman-Cecil Medicine. 27th ed. Philadelphia, PA: Elsevier; 2024:chap 135.