[Pulmonary complications in hepatic coma]

Incidence and extent of pulmonary complications were evaluated retrospectively in 101 patients with hepatic coma (34 patients with acute liver failure, 57 patients with hepatic encephalopathy and 10 patients with mixed forms). 76 patients (73.3%) had pulmonary complications (pulmonary edema 57 cases, pneumonia 20 cases, tracheobronchitis 30 cases). Lethality of the group with pulmonary complications was 97% as compared to 16% in the group without pulmonary complications. Pathogenesis of pulmonary complications is not completely clear; different mechanisms are being discussed like central mechanisms, vascular lesions caused by metabolic or toxic factors, cardiac failure, and increased susceptibility to infection. In 9 out of 59 cases (15.3%) with respiratory failure no morphological changes could be observed in the lungs; in these cases intrapulmonary shunts might have been the cause for the pulmonary complications. The incidence of pulmonary complications increased by a factor of 2.4 during intensive care unit treatment of the patients; this increase shows, that intensive care unit treatment still has to be improved.