what is cholestatic liver disease | causes and treatment

Cholestasis (decreased bile flow) can be severe or incurable and affect any age group. In infants and toddlers the causes are often congenital or inherited and as a result of improved management, some affected children are now living into adulthood. Although jaundice is a symptom of cholestasis it may not be present, especially in adults with chronic cholestatic liver disease most of whom are completely undetectable. Detailed history and physiology are important in radiologic examination and testing (ultrasound, computed tomography scan, and magnetic resonance cholangiography) that make it easier to diagnose, especially when the cause is extrahepatic. Only if there are enough (> 10) papers in the liver test can this test reliably detect damage to the small bile ducts. Treatment should address the causes and effects of bile acid retention within the liver, and a decrease in bile delivery to the intestinal tract. Medication should address the symptoms, especially pruritus and prevention, especially osteoporosis and osteomalacia. High blood pressure in the portal can be the first event of chronic cholestatic liver disease, sometimes occurring before the development of cirrhosis of the liver. Ursodeoxycholic acid improves the chemical symptoms of cholestasis regardless of the cause and can delay the progression of liver disease; only liver transplants are available here.