[Possibilities in the treatment of primary biliary cirrhosis]

The primary biliary cirrhosis (PBC) is a chronic, progressive disease of unknown origin with immune pathomechanism. The disease is accompanied with the chronic inflammation of the small and middle intra-hepatic bile ducts. It occurs in 90 per cent of women. The authors summarizes the possibilities ot its therapy after the review of the pathogenesis and clinical findings. They discuss the pathomechanism and the effects on the biochemical and histological findings of ursodeoxycholic acid (UDCA), which is the basis therapy of this disease, The place and indication of immunosuppressive drugs as well as possibilities of immune modulation are also reviewed on the basis of literary data. The therapy in the complication PBC and concomitant diseases are also discussed. The authors mention the opportunities of the therapy which will be applied in the future as a fruitful therapy.