Zaburzenia mikroflory jelitowej w marskości wątroby - potencjalne implikacje kliniczne i terapeutyczne.

The imbalance of intestinal microflora in patients with liver cirrhosis is common and plays an important role in the pathogenesis of life threatening complications. Hepatorenal syndrome is an example of serious complication of decompensated cirrhosis. It occurs as a consequence of several pathologic activations of enzymatic pathways, which lead to serious but initially reversible hemodynamic disturbances. However, party due to our limited knowledge of its pathomechanism the pharmacological treatment is ineffective. The therapeutic substances with gut microbiota modifying properties might change the prognosis of patients with liver cirrhosis. Probiotics possess the potential to modulate synthesis of endogenous substances implicated in the pathogenesis of liver complications. In this paper we review the current knowledge on the role of intestinal microflora in liver cirrhosis and induction of its complications. Therapeutic and clinical implications with strong emphasis on probiotics in cirrhotic patients are discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]