Care of the Cholestatic Patient

Cholestasis is defined as impairment of bile formation or bile flow . Care of the patient with cholestatic features is dependent on identifying the cause of the cholestasis, initiating appropriate treatment of reversible conditions, and the recognition and management of cholestasis-specific complications. Cholestasis may include extrahepatic ducts and intrahepatic bile ducts , or may be limited to one or the other. Jaundice and pruritus are the hallmarks of cholestasis clinically but biochemical evidence may, and often does, precede the clinical manifestations.