Within our Pediatric Hepatology Program, a multidisciplinary team provides comprehensive care for patients with fatty liver disease and includes a clinical psychologist, dietitian, pediatric endocrinologists and pediatric hepatologists. Similarly, patients with biliary atresia are cared for by a team comprised of pediatric hepatologists, pediatric surgeons, a dietitian and transplant surgeons. The program also offers selective shunts for patients with non-cirrhotic portal hypertension.
Our team has cared for pediatric liver transplant recipients with a combined experience of over two decades and is committed to providing the best possible outcomes for our patients. They realize some conditions can be managed with medication, while others may require surgery. Taking a family-centered care approach, they work with the entire family to treat the child, not just the disease.
Acute Liver Failure (ALF) occurs when many of the cells in the liver die or become very damaged in a short period of time. ALF has many causes, such as metabolic conditions or toxicity from incorrect dosage of acetaminophen. ALF can sometimes be treated with medication, if it is identified early.
Biliary atresia is a disease of the liver and bile ducts that occurs in infants. In children with biliary atresia, bile – a liquid that helps the body digest fat – cannot properly drain from the liver. This damages liver cells and can lead to liver failure. Surgical procedures can correct bile flow problems, but the liver disease progresses and requires specialized care to improve growth, development, nutrition and long-term outcomes, which is what our program addresses.
