Liver Path 3 Flashcards
Autoimmune hepatitis
Injury to normal hepatocytes by infiltrating T cells and plasma cells leading to fibrosis/cirrhosis
Lab tests to detect immunologic abnormalities
Characteristic antibodies:
- Anti-nuclear antibodies
- Anti-smooth (actin) muscle antibodies
High level of polyclonal immunoglobulins (IgG)
Chronic disease but usually highly response to immunosuppression by prednisone and azathioprine
prevalence of autoimmune hepatitis
Most common in young women
Genetic predisposition (HLA-DR in Caucasians)
~50% of patients with AIH will have * concurrent autoimmune disorders
In Western Europe and North America, where viral hepatitis prevalence rates are relatively low, AIH accounts for roughly 20% of chronic hepatitis in the white populations
Type 1 autoimmune hepatitis:
middle-aged women
antinuclear (ANA), anti–smooth muscle (actin) antibodies* (ASMA) and pANCA
Type 2 autoimmune hepatitis:
children or teenagers (mostly female)
associated with anti-liver kidney microsomal antibodies (anti-LKM1)*
Histopathology of Autoimmune Hepatitis
Autoimmune hepatitis shares patterns of injury with acute or chronic viral hepatitis
Features considered typical of autoimmune hepatitis include:
Extensive interface hepatitis
Plasma cell predominance in the mononuclear inflammatory infiltrates
Robbins key concepts on autoimmune hepatitis
There are two primary types of autoimmune hepatitis:
- Type 1 autoimmune hepatitis is most often seen in middle-aged women and is most characteristically associated with antinuclear and anti–smooth muscle antibodies (ANA and ASMA)
- Type 2 autoimmune hepatitis is most often seen in children or teenagers and is associated with anti-liver kidney microsomal autoantibodies (anti-LKM1)
Autoimmune hepatitis may either develop with a rapidly progressive acute disease or follow a more indolent path; if untreated, both are likely to lead to liver failure.
Plasma cells are a prominent and characteristic component of the inflammatory infiltrate in biopsy specimens showing autoimmune hepatitis.
drug and toxin causes of liver injury, acute or chronic
esp. acetaminophen, ethanol
Exposure to a toxin or therapeutic agent should always be included in the differential diagnosis of any form of liver disease
Acute Hepatitis
Symptoms: nonspecific constitutional symptoms; jaundice
Liver chemistry tests: AST & ALT»_space;>Alk phos and TBili
Histologic pattern: lobular disarray with minimal portal changes and no fibrosis
Drug-Induced Liver Injury
Bile duct injury
Steatosis and steatohepatitis
Vascular injury/veno-occlusive disease
Neoplasms
Drug and Chemical induced Hepatic Injury
Drug-induced liver diseases can mimic all forms of acute and chronic hepatobiliary diseases
Hepatic injury may result from
Direct toxicity
Hepatic conversion to a toxic form
Immune mechanisms..agent acts as hapten
Patterns of Drug- and Toxin-Induced Hepatic Injury
The manifestations of drug-induced hepatotoxicity are highly variable*
- Periportal region: gluconeogenesis, cholesterol and urea synthesis; high oxygen
- Pericentral region: Glycolysis, bile acid and glutamine synthesis, drug metabolism, p450-dependent bioactivation
prognosis of drug-induced liver injury
Except in rare cases of drug-induced chronic hepatitis, the liver injury subsides and disappears after the cessation of treatment with the drug
Drug-Induced Liver Injury examples
Hepatocellular injury
- Acetaminophen
Autoimmune hepatocellular injury
- Halothane hepatitis
Cholestatic liver injury
- Estrogen (may have genetic predisposition)
Acetaminophen
now the most common cause of acute liver failure necessitating transplantation in the United States
Toxicity is from a metabolic by-product (NAPQI); Zone 3 necrosis (pericentral)
Toxicity is greatly enhanced by concurrent ETOH consumption (upregulation of cytochrome P-450 system)
Antidote is N-acetyl cysteine; must give within 8-12 hours; restores glutathione
The median acute dose causing liver failure is 24 g (48 extra-strength tablets)
Drugs that Induce CYP2E1 Increase Acetaminophen Toxicity
**Ethanol
Isoniazid (INH)
Phenobarbital