Source Medical Research Associate. Hepatic encephalopathy is a
serious and potentially fatal complication of both acute and
chronic liver disease, arising as a result of hepatocellular
failure, cirrhosis and/or portal-systemic shunting (Ferenci et
al, 2002). It reflects a broad spectrum of neuropsychiatric
abnormalities, encompassing a range of defects in psychomotor,
locomotive, cognitive, emotional and behavioural functions
(Prakash and Mullen, 2010). Hepatic encephalopathy is either
overt or minimal. While overt hepatic encephalopathy can be
diagnosed using bedside clinical tests, minimal hepatic
encephalopathy is clinically invisible and requires psychometric
testing to diagnose. The rising prevalence of end-stage viral
hepatitis-related liver disease, coupled with the growing
problem of alcoholic and non-alcoholic fatty liver disease, has
significantly increased the burden of disease from cirrhosis
(Mooney et al, 2007; Fleming et al, 2008), so recognition and
appropriate management of the manifestations