Primary sclerosing cholangitis: new approaches to diagnosis, surveillance and treatment.
Primary sclerosing cholangitis (PSC) is a chronic inflammatory bile duct disease of unknown etiology, frequently associated with inflammatory bowel disease and leading to end-stage liver disease requiring liver transplantation. Moreover, PSC is a premalignant condition associated with an increased risk for hepatobiliary and colorectal malignancy. Since effective medical therapy for PSC is still lacking, this disorder represents a potentially fatal disease with poor prognosis. This article is a summary of an overview given at the 5th Falk Gastro Conference in Munich 2012 and reviews the challenges associated with diagnosis, surveillance and therapy of PSC.
Division of Gastroenterology and Hepatology, Department of Internal Medicine III, Medical University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria. michael.trauner @ meduniwien.ac.at
Michael
M
Trauner
Emina
E
Halilbasic
Anna
A
Baghdasaryan
Tarek
T
Moustafa
Elisabeth
E
Krones
Peter
P
Fickert
Harald
H
Hofer
Edward
E
Penner
D015209:Cholangitis, Sclerosing / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000188:drug therapy / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000628:therapy*; D006801:Humans; D011159:Population Surveillance; D014580:Ursodeoxycholic Acid / Q000627:therapeutic use
D014580:Ursodeoxycholic Acid