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Causes
By Mayo Clinic staff
In autoimmune hepatitis, the body's immune system, which ordinarily attacks viruses, bacteria and other pathogens, instead targets the liver. Your body's attack on your liver can lead to chronic inflammation and serious damage to liver cells. Just why the body turns against itself is unclear, but autoimmune hepatitis appears to be triggered by:
- Infections. Autoimmune hepatitis can develop after such viral infections as acute hepatitis A, hepatitis B or measles or after infection with the Epstein-Barr virus. Epstein-Barr is one of the most common human viruses and linked to a number of disorders, including mononucleosis.
- Certain drugs. Some medications injure the liver directly — overdoses of the common pain reliever acetaminophen (Tylenol, others), for example, can cause liver failure. Other drugs harm the liver indirectly by stimulating an abnormal immune response that then harms liver cells.
- Genetic abnormalities. Some people seem genetically predisposed to develop autoimmune hepatitis. Researchers have identified certain gene abnormalities that increase the likelihood the disease will develop at a young age. Other genetic abnormalities may make autoimmune hepatitis more aggressive and harder to treat.
Types of autoimmune hepatitis
Doctors have identified two main forms of autoimmune hepatitis:
- Type 1 (classic) autoimmune hepatitis. Often developing suddenly, this is the most common type of the disease. Although it can occur in anyone at any age, most of those affected are young women. About half the people with type 1 autoimmune hepatitis have other autoimmune disorders, such as thyroiditis, rheumatoid arthritis or ulcerative colitis. Their blood also is likely to contain antibodies against organ tissue.
- Type 2 autoimmune hepatitis. Although adults can develop type 2 autoimmune hepatitis, it's most common in young girls and often occurs with other autoimmune problems.
