What are the complications of cirrhosis?

Many people with cirrhosis have no signs or symptoms at all and feel quite well. In this condition, which is known as compensated cirrhosis, even though the liver is severely scarred, there are enough healthy cells within the scarred liver to perform all the necessary functions of a noncirrhotic liver. Most people with compensated cirrhosis remain in this condition for life and do not develop further complications of liver disease.

Over time, some people with compensated cirrhosis progress to decompensated cirrhosis. In this condition the liver is no longer capable of performing all its normal functions. Complications that people with decompensated cirrhosis may experience include bleeding varicose veins (varices) in the esophagus or stomach, accumulation of fluid in the abdomen (ascites), yellowing of the eyes and skin (jaundice), and confusion due to the liver’s inability to clear toxins from the blood (hepatic encephalopathy).