The liver-impaired patient

Abstract

Among all organs in the human body, the liver is the largest and carries out the greatest number of functions. The liver’s important and multiple activities impact all body systems, including the nervous system. The relationship between the liver and the brain has been known for centuries (Frerichs 1860; Lewis and Howdle 2003; Tarter et al. 1989; Wilson 1912). Patients with hepatic dysfunction frequently experience neuropsychiatric syndromes, of which the most well known is hepatic encephalopathy (Ferenci et al 2002).