Acute fatty liver of pregnancy: Over six months follow-up study of twenty-five patients

AIM: To evaluate the prognosis of patients with acute fatty liver of pregnancy (AFLP) 6 mo or longer after discharge. METHODS: The records of pregnant patients diagnosed with AFLP at Beijing Ditan Hospital over a 16-year period were reviewed in November 2012. Patients were monitored using abdominal ultrasound, liver and kidney functions, and routine blood examination. RESULTS: A total of 42 patients were diagnosed with AFLP during the study period, and 25 were followed. The mean follow-up duration was 54.5 mo (range: 6.5-181 mo). All patients were in good physical condition, but one patient had gestational diabetes. The renal and liver functions normalized in all patients after recovery, including in those with pre-existing liver or kidney failure. The ultrasound findings were normal in 12 patients, an increasingly coarsened echo-pattern and increased echogenicity of the liver in 10 patients, and mild to moderate fatty liver infiltration in 3 patients. Cirrhosis or liver nodules were not observed in any patient. CONCLUSION: Acute liver failure and acute renal failure in AFLP patients is reversible. Patients do not require any specific long-term follow-up after recovery from AFLP if their liver function tests have normalized and they remain well.