Liver support systems

Liver support systems are therapeutic devices to assist in performing the functions of the liver in persons with liver damage.

The primary functions of the liver include removing toxic substances from the blood, manufacturing blood proteins, storing energy in the form of glycogen, and secreting bile. The that perform these tasks can be killed or impaired by disease, resulting in hepatic insufficiency. A sudden onset of life-threatening hepatic insufficiency is known as acute liver failure (ALF).

In hyperacute and acute liver failure the clinical picture develops rapidly with progressive encephalopathy and multiorgan dysfunction such as hyperdynamic circulation, coagulopathy, acute renal and respiratory insufficiency, severe metabolic alterations and cerebral edema that can lead to brain death. In these cases the mortality without liver transplantation (LTx) ranges between 40-80%. LTx is the only effective treatment for these patients although it requires a precise indication and timing to achieve good results. Nevertheless, due to the scarcity of organs to carry out liver transplantations, it is estimated that one third of patients with ALF die while waiting to be transplanted. On the other hand, a patient with a chronic hepatic disease can suffer an acute decompensation of liver function following a precipitating event such as variceal bleeding, sepsis and excessive alcohol intake among others that can lead to a condition referred to as acute-on-chronic liver failure (ACLF). Both types of hepatic insufficiency, ALF and ACLF, can potentially be reversible and liver functionality can return to a level similar to that prior to the insult or precipitating event. LTx is the only treatment that has shown an improvement in the prognosis and survival with most severe cases of ALF. Nevertheless, cost and donor scarcity have prompted researchers to look for new supportive treatments that can act as “bridge” to the transplant procedure. By stabilizing the patient’s clinical state, or by creating the right conditions that could allow the recovery of native liver functions, both detoxification and synthesis can improve, after an episode of ALF or ACLF. Basically, three different types of supportive therapies have been developed: bio-artificial, artificial and hybrid liver support systems (Table 2).

...
Wikipedia