When looking at liver diseases, keep in mind:
- Aetiologic category – Helps you to remember cause and pathogenesis (eg. Vascular; Infectious, Neoplastic etc)
- Cellular/subcellular and hence functional components affected (eg. hepatocytes; bile canaliculi; bile duct epithelium; central veins/sinusoids)
- Helps to work out morphology (gross and micro)
- Helps you work out clinical manifestations
- eg. Alcoholic liver disease –> abnormal lipid metabolism, free radicals, cytokines –> steatosis, steatohepatitis –> necrosis of hepatocytes (Alcoholic Hepatitis) –> nodular regeneration of hepatocytes with fibrosis (Cirrhosis) –> portal hypertension, eventual Liver failure
Here is a video mindmap of some liver diseases according to aetiologic categories.