Documentos de Académico
Documentos de Profesional
Documentos de Cultura
Luis Guillermo Toro1*, Elizabeth María Correa2, Luisa Fernanda Calle2, Adriana Ocampo3, Sandra María Vélez4
Abstract
Liver diseases develop in 3% to 5% of all gestations. Among the causes are: 1. Physiological changes of
pregnancy. 2. Pre-existing liver diseases and conditions. The most common are cholestatic diseases such as
primary biliary cholangitis and primary sclerosing cholangitis. Others include autoimmune hepatitis, Wilson’s
disease, chronic viral hepatitis, cirrhosis of any etiology and histories of liver transplantation. 3. Liver disease
acquired during pregnancy, especially viral hepatitis, drug-induced toxicity and hepatolithiasis. 4. Pregnancy-
related liver diseases including hyperemesis gravidarum, intrahepatic cholestasis of pregnancy, preeclamp-
sia, HELLP syndrome and fatty liver of pregnancy.
Severity ranges from absence of symptoms to acute liver failure and even death. Severe cases have
significant morbidity and mortality for both mother and fetus. These cases require rapid evaluation, accurate
diagnosis and appropriate management by a multidisciplinary team including high-risk obstetrics, hepatology,
gastroenterology and interventional radiology. Availability of liver transplantation is also important for obtaining
good outcomes.
Keywords
Pregnancy, hyperemesis gravidarum, gestational cholestasis, HELLP, preeclampsia, hepatitis B virus, cirrho-
sis, liver transplantation.