Learn About Hepatic Ischemia
Hepatic ischemia is a condition in which the liver does not get enough blood or oxygen. This causes injury to liver cells.
Ischemic hepatitis; Shock liver
Low blood pressure from any condition can lead to hepatic ischemia. Such conditions may include:
- Abnormal heart rhythms
- Dehydration
- Heart failure
- Infection, especially sepsis
- Severe bleeding
Other causes may include:
- Blood clots in the main artery to the liver (hepatic artery) after a liver transplant
- Inflammation of blood vessels, leading to reduced blood flow (vasculitis)
- Burns
- Heat stroke
- Having a sickle cell crisis
The person may have an altered mental status due to reduced blood flow to the brain. Other symptoms may include:
- Loss of appetite
- Feeling of general discomfort
- Discomfort in the right upper quadrant of your abdomen
- Jaundice
Damage to the liver cells most often does not cause symptoms until it affects liver function.
Blood clots in the liver's main artery may cause abdominal pain.
Treatment depends on the cause. Low blood pressure and blood clots must be treated right away.
UPMC Liver Cancer Center
Samer Tohme is a General Surgeon in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. Dr. Tohme has been practicing medicine for over 16 years and is rated as an Elite provider by MediFind in the treatment of Hepatic Ischemia. His top areas of expertise are Hepatic Ischemia, Liver Cancer, Fibrolamellar Carcinoma, Hepatectomy, and Liver Transplant. Dr. Tohme is currently accepting new patients.
Ronald Busuttil is a Transplant Surgeon in Los Angeles, California. Dr. Busuttil is rated as an Elite provider by MediFind in the treatment of Hepatic Ischemia. His top areas of expertise are Hepatic Ischemia, Liver Failure, Hepatitis, Liver Transplant, and Pancreas Transplant.
Haoming Zhou practices in Nanjing, China. Zhou is rated as an Elite expert by MediFind in the treatment of Hepatic Ischemia. Their top areas of expertise are Hepatic Ischemia, Non-Alcoholic Fatty Liver Disease, Jaundice, Liver Transplant, and Pancreaticoduodenectomy.
People generally recover if the illness causing hepatic ischemia can be treated. Death from liver failure due to hepatic ischemia is very rare.
Liver failure is a rare, but fatal complication.
Contact your health care provider right away if you have persistent weakness or symptoms of shock or dehydration.
Quickly treating the causes of low blood pressure may prevent hepatic ischemia.
Summary: Radiofrequency devices have been increasingly employed in liver surgery in order to achieve proper hemostasis and this use has become more evident with the implementation of minimal invasive surgery. Due to its well-known efficacy for tumor ablation (i.e. hepatocarcinoma) it use has been extended in some cases to ablate the liver surface after resection in questionable resection. Till date, despit...
Summary: Patients with PVTT involvement is a significant healthcare burden as they are present in up to 40% of patients with HCC at diagnosis. These patients exhibit a poorer prognosis compared to patients without PVTT, as a result they were often excluded from existing pivotal clinical trials \[9-11\]. Without management, the median OS in affected patients could be as short as 2 to 4 months. The role of l...
Published Date: May 14, 2024
Published By: Jenifer K. Lehrer, MD, Department of Gastroenterology, Aria - Jefferson Health Torresdale, Jefferson Digestive Diseases Network, 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.
Korenblat KM. Approach to the patient with jaundice or abnormal liver tests. In: Goldman L, Cooney KA, eds. Goldman-Cecil Medicine. 27th ed. Philadelphia, PA: Elsevier; 2024:chap 133.
Nery FG, Valla DC. Vascular diseases of the liver. In: Feldman M, Friedman LS, Brandt LJ, eds. Sleisenger and Fordtran's Gastrointestinal and Liver Disease. 11th ed. Philadelphia, PA: Elsevier; 2021:chap 85.