Hepatic encephalopathy: cause and possible management with botanicals

Hepatic encephalopathy is a brain functional disorder, characterized by neuropsychiatric abnormalities with liver failure. High blood ammonia, causing glutamate neurotoxicity is the basic cause, finally leading to low-grade cerebral edema. Its manifestation is more likely in patients of sepsis, oxidative stress, generalized inflammation, gut mal-functioning, amoebiaesis, viral hepatitis, nervous imbalance, etc. Thus, the therapeutic goals primarily include the maintenance of proper blood supply and prevention of hypoxic condition in liver, along with management of factors responsible for high blood ammonia, oxidative stress, inflammation, and high GI- serotonin. The drugs in clinical practice include lactulose, sodium benzoate, flumazenil and rifaximin, supplementation of zinc, branched chain amino acids (BCAA), l-ornithine-l aspartate, antioxidants and iNOS inhibitors. However, herbal formulations would be of great importance as it shows multi-targeted action because it possesses a natural cocktail of secondary metabolites. It can collectively act as an antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, prebiotic, hepatoprotective and neuron-protective agents. We have briefly outlined some of these plants and also recent patents useful in the management of hepatic encephalopathy.