Editorial
Copyright ©2009 The WJG Press and Baishideng. All rights reserved.
World J Gastroenterol. Nov 28, 2009; 15(44): 5505-5510
Published online Nov 28, 2009. doi: 10.3748/wjg.15.5505
Spontaneous bacterial peritonitis: A severe complication of liver cirrhosis
Jan Lata, Oldřich Stiburek, Marcela Kopacova
Jan Lata, Oldřich Stiburek, Department of Internal Medicine and Hepatogastroenterology, University Hospital and Faculty of Medicine, Masaryk University, 637 00 Brno, Czech Republic
Marcela Kopacova, 2nd Department of Medicine, Charles University in Praha, Faculty of Medicine at Hradec Kralove, University Teaching Hospital, 500 05 Hradec Králove, Czech Republic
Author contributions: Lata J, Stiburek O and Kopacova M contributed equally to this work.
Supported by The research project: NR 9310-3, Internal Grant Agency, Ministry of Health and research grant MSM 6198959223, Ministry of Education, Czech Republic
Correspondence to: Jan Lata, MD, PhD, Professor, Department of Internal Medicine and Hepatogastroenterology, University Hospital and Faculty of Medicine, Masaryk University, IGEK, FN Brno, Jihlavska 20, 637 00 Brno, Czech Republic. jlata@fnbrno.cz
Telephone: +420-53-2233500 Fax: +420-53-2233254
Received: August 6, 2009
Revised: October 1, 2009
Accepted: October 8, 2009
Published online: November 28, 2009
Abstract

This report presents a survey of current knowledge concerning one of the relatively frequent and severe complications of liver cirrhosis and associated ascites-spontaneous bacterial peritonitis. Epidemiology, aetiology, pathogenesis, clinical manifestation, diagnosis and present possibilities of treatment are discussed.

Keywords: Liver cirrhosis, Portal hypertension, Ascites, Spontaneous bacterial peritonitis