Concurrent autoimmune diseases in patients with autoimmune hepatitis.

Background: Although the pathomechanisms of autoimmune diseases in various organs remain unresolved, an accumulation of autoimmune diseases in individual patients has been observed. An overlap of autoimmune hepatitis (AIH) and primary biliary cirrhosis (PBC) or primary sclerosing cirrhosis has been well documented. However, the overlap of autoimmune diseases other than PBC or PSC has not yet been investigated in a large cohort.

Hepatocellular carcinoma in patients with autoimmune hepatitis.

Aim: To evaluate and confirm the low incidence of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) in patients with autoimmune hepatitis (AIH). At present only very few cases of HCC in patients with AIH and definite exclusion of chronic viral hepatitis have been published, suggesting that HCC due to AIH is rare.

Methods: In order to further investigate the incidence of HCC in patients with AIH, we reviewed our large cohort of 278 patients with AIH.

Genetic association of autoimmune hepatitis and human leucocyte antigen in German patients.

Aim: To report on our large German collective and updated data of 142 patients with autoimmune hepatitis (AIH) type 1.

Methods: Key investigations performed were liver biopsy, serum autoantibodies as well as serum markers such as IgG and elevated transaminases. Antinuclear antigen (ANA) and smooth muscle antigen (SMA) autoantibodies characterized type 1 AIH.