Bleeding may occur where the needle is placed in your neck or in your liver. Bleeding is rare. If you do bleed, you should not need a blood transfusion. Bleeding is usually easy to handle. The confusion is called hepatic encephalopathy.
Hepatic encephalopathy is usually mild and is treated with medicine taken by mouth.
Sometimes TIPS causes a further decrease in liver function because most of the blood flowing into the liver now flows through the tube. If this happens, you will need a liver transplant sooner. As a result, your life expectancy may be shorter than expected. TIPS can also cause kidney damage and anemia.