A diffuse fibrotic process that involves the entire liver is known as?

Cirrhosis is characterized by a diffuse fibrotic process that affects the entire liver, leading to the replacement of healthy liver tissue with scar tissue. This scarring results from chronic liver damage, which can be caused by a variety of factors including chronic hepatitis infections, alcohol abuse, and metabolic disorders. The fibrotic tissue disrupts the normal architecture of the liver, impairing its function and blood flow.

In cirrhosis, the increased fibrous tissue also leads to complications such as portal hypertension, liver failure, and increased risk of liver cancer. On imaging, cirrhosis may be observed through changes in liver size, surface nodularity, and alterations in hepatic vasculature due to the scarring process.

Understanding the systemic effects of cirrhosis is essential for grasping the broader implications of liver disease. The other conditions mentioned do not describe a diffuse fibrotic process affecting the entire liver in the same manner. For instance, acute hepatitis typically involves inflammation rather than fibrosis, fatty liver is characterized by triglyceride accumulation within liver cells without widespread fibrosis, and portal hypertension refers to increased blood pressure in the portal venous system, which can be a consequence of cirrhosis but is not itself a fibrotic