The role of surgery in the treatment of portal hypertension.

The role of surgery in the treatment of portal hypertension continues to evolve. Pharmacologic and endoscopic therapies are the primary treatment modalities for the prophylaxis and treatment of variceal bleeding and ascites. Failure of these therapies is the indication for invasive intervention such as TIPS, surgical shunt, or devascularization. Distal splenoreal shunting provides selective variceal decompression with less encephalopathy and accelerated hepatic failure than portal decompression. Liver transplantation remains the treatment of choice for patients with poor hepatic function.