Movement dysfunction and hepatic encephalopathy

Hepatic encephalopathy is characterized by a variety of neurological symptoms. The occurrence of movement disorders is exceptional and is usually part of a clinical syndrome called acquired hepatocerebral degeneration, which is a subtype of chronic recurrent hepatic encephalopathy. The clinical picture is usually progressive and pathologic findings include regional astroglial and neuronal abnormalities found predominantly in cortex and basal ganglia. As for hepatic encephalopathy in general, the pathophysiology of this disorder is unknown but hyperammonemia and/or brain manganese overload may play a role. Medical treatment is often disappointing but in selected cases liver transplantation may be curative.