Page 16 - Time to DeLiver: Getting a Grip on HE report 2015

SECTION 3
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Common symptoms described by 80% of All of the patients mentioned in this
patients include irregular sleep patterns, report experienced symptoms that
forgetfulness and poor concentration. significantly affected their day-to-day
More than half of the respondents reported lives. They felt unable to cope, confused,
personality or mood changes, difficulty fatigued and their families often described
speaking or writing, and memory loss.21,22 them as difficult to live with as they were
not themselves.
“These findings really drive home the
crushing impact of hepatic encephalopathy Calls to action
on patients, families and the healthcare
system. The results tell us that we have to • An ICD code for hepatic encephalopathy
get better at detecting and diagnosing the should be reintroduced as a priority
disease, and managing and preventing into the ICD-10 revision to allow this
further episodes, which we can do through information to be more easily collected
better awareness and treatment.” and analysed.

- D r Richard Aspinall, consultant hepatologist, • Healthcare providers, policy makers
Trustee and medical advisor to Liver4Life. and patient organisations should work
together to properly assess the impact
An important barrier to the collection of of hepatic encephalopathy on patients,
this information is the lack of a specific caregivers and healthcare resources.
International Classification of Diseases
(ICD) code for hepatic encephalopathy.
The ICD code is a diagnostic tool used
to monitor the incidence and prevalence
of diseases for health management and
clinical purposes23. Previously there was a
specific code for hepatic encephalopathy
and the re-introduction of this in the ICD-10
update would facilitate the measurement of
prevalence, cost and disease burden.24

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