Causes of Liver Failure

The principal diseases that can lead to liver failure include:

• Chronic viral hepatitis
  • Hepatitis B
  • Hepatitis C
• Alcohol-related liver disease
• Nonalcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH) — fatty liver disease not caused by alcohol
• Autoimmune hepatitis
• Cholestatic liver diseases
  • Primary biliary cirrhosis
  • Primary sclerosing cholangitis
  • Biliary atresia
  • Alagille syndrome
  • Progressive familial intrahepatic cholestasis
• Metabolic diseases of the liver
  • Hemochromatosis
  • Wilson disease
  • Alpha-1 antitrypsin deficiency
  • Tyrosinemia
  • Cystic fibrosis
• Cryptogenic cirrhosis (cirrhosis of unknown cause)
• Polycystic liver disease
• Budd–Chiari syndrome
• Amyloidosis

The diseases listed above can cause irreversible liver damage over time. Early diagnosis and regular monitoring are therefore critically important.