Management of Autoimmune Hepatitis
AASLD develops evidence-based practice guidelines and practice guidances which are updated regularly by a multi-disciplinary panel of experts, including hepatologists, and include recommendations of preferred approaches to the diagnostic, therapeutic, and preventive aspects of care.
Practice Guideline
Diagnosis and Management of Autoimmune Hepatitis [Updated November 2019]
Autoimmune Hepatitis (AIH) is an immune-mediated inflammatory liver disease of uncertain cause which affects all ages, both genders, and all ethnicities. Patients may be asymptomatic, be chronically ill, or present with acute liver failure (ALF); and the diagnosis must be considered in all patients with acute or chronic liver inflammation, including patients with graft dysfunction after LT. AIH does not have a signature diagnostic feature, and the diagnosis requires the presence of a constellation of typical features which can vary between patients with the same disease and can occur in other liver diseases. Progression to advanced hepatic fibrosis, cirrhosis, death from liver failure, or LT are possible outcomes. Treatment with immunosuppressive agents has been life-saving, but management regimens may be long-term, associated with serious side effects, and variably effective.