Some liver diseases occur only in women and others are more frequent in women than men.
Specific to women are the liver diseases of pregnancy such as acute fatty liver of pregnancy, cholestasis of pregnancy and liver disease associated with pre-eclampsia, hepatic infarction and rupture. Also, management of liver disease may present specific problems in women, for instance the influence of estrogen replacement therapy on the natural history of liver disease and the management of osteoporosis in women with liver disease and abuse of illicit drugs. Addressing these issues is critical for the optimal clinical management of liver disease in women. Several liver and biliary diseases are more common or more severe among minority individuals reflecting both cultural and socioeconomic factors. These conditions include chronic hepatitis C among African Americans and Hispanics, alcoholic and drug abuse liver disease among Native and African Americans and gallstones and gallbladder cancer among Mexican Americans and Native Americans.