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Definition
By Mayo Clinic staff
Autoimmune hepatitis is inflammation in your liver that occurs when your body's immune system attacks your liver. Although the cause of autoimmune hepatitis isn't entirely clear, some diseases, toxins and drugs may trigger autoimmune hepatitis in susceptible people, especially women.
Untreated autoimmune hepatitis can lead to scarring of the liver (cirrhosis) and eventually to liver failure. When diagnosed and treated early, however, autoimmune hepatitis often can be controlled with drugs that suppress the immune system.
A liver transplant may be an option when autoimmune hepatitis doesn't respond to drug treatments or when liver disease is advanced.
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- Autoimmune hepatitis. National Institute for Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases. http://digestive.niddk.nih.gov/ddiseases/pubs/autoimmunehep/. Accessed Feb. 9, 2012.
- McPhee SJ, et al. Current Medical Diagnosis & Treatment 2012. New York, N.Y.: The McGraw-Hill Companies; 2012. http://www.accessmedicine.com/resourceTOC.aspx?resourceID=1. Accessed Feb. 16, 2012.
- Luxon BA. Diagnosis and treatment of autoimmune hepatitis. Gastroenterology Clinics of North America. 2008;37:461.
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- Greenberger NJ, et al, eds. Current Diagnosis & Treatment: Gastroenterology, Hepatology, & Endoscopy. New York, N.Y.: McGraw-Hill; 2009. http://www.accessmedicine.com/content.aspx?aID=6204532. Accessed Feb. 16, 2012.
- Teufel A, et al. Concurrent autoimmune diseases in patients with autoimmune hepatitis. Journal of Clinical Gastroenterology. 2010;44:208.
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