Liver disease is an important cause of illness and death amongst excessive and dependent drinkers. Yet professionals working in the alcohol field appear to have limited understanding of the epidemiology, clinical assessment and treatment of acute and chronic alcoholic liver disease. This presentation seeks to help improve this understanding by presenting key current research and clinical practice findings. The presentation is divided into five sections:
- The importance and determining factors of alcoholic liver disease
- Assessing the severity of liver disease
- Other causes of liver disease in problem drinkers
- A practical classification of alcoholic liver disease
- The longer term outlook of alcoholic liver disease:
- What is the risk of death?
- Does severe cirrhosis significantly improve with abstinence or moderation of drinking?
- What longer term benefit does liver transplantation have for severe chronic liver disease and acute alcoholic hepatitis?
