Digestive Diseases and Sciences

, Volume 53, Issue 9, pp 2330–2333 | Cite as

Is Oral l-Acyl-Carnitine an Effective Therapy for Hepatic Encephalopathy? Review of the Literature

Review Paper
First Online:
Received:
Accepted:

Abstract

Hepatic encephalopathy (HE) is a significant cause of morbidity and mortality in patients with advanced chronic liver disease. Current therapies are associated with inconvenient side-effects, high cost, and incomplete efficacy. The quanternary ammonium compound l-acyl-carnitine has been suggested as a potent, low-cost, and safe alternative therapy for patients with cirrhosis and HE. A systematic review of the literature assessing the use of carnitine in the treatment of HE identified three high-quality human trials for review. Analysis of the selected carnitine trials compared to currently accepted therapies suggests that l-acyl-carnitine is promising as a safe and effective treatment for HE, and further trials of this drug are warranted.

Keywords

Carnitine Hepatic encephalopathy Cirrhosis Portal hypertension 
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Notes

Acknowledgments

Thanks are due to Drs. John Baillie, MB, ChB, FRCP and Girish Mishra, MD, MS for their assistance in reviewing this article before submission.

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Copyright information

© Springer Science+Business Media, LLC 2008

Authors and Affiliations

  1. 1.Division of Gastroenterology, Department of MedicineWake Forest University Health SystemWinston-SalemUSA
  2. 2.Department of Internal Medicine, Section on Gastroenterology, Medical Center BoulevardWake Forest University Baptist Medical CenterWinston-SalemUSA
  3. 3.Division of Gastroenterology and Hepatology, Department of MedicineStanford University School of MedicineStanfordUSA

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