Surgical treatment of primary biliary cirrhosis and primary sclerosing cholangitis

Primary biliary cirrhosis (PBC) and primary sclerosing cholangitis (PSC) are progressive cholestatic liver diseases of supposed auto-immune etiology. The clinical course is unpredictable and, in many patients, leads to end-stage liver disease or a poor quality of life. Conservative therapy only has a limited effect on the natural history, but orthotopic liver transplantation (OLT) offers a definitive therapeutic option.