Biological basis of child health 9: development of the liver and clinical features of childhood liver disease
Intended for healthcare professionals
CPD    

Biological basis of child health 9: development of the liver and clinical features of childhood liver disease

Sam Archer Paediatric Site Practitioner and Trainee Advanced Nurse Practitioner, child health, King’s College Hospital NHS Foundation Trust, London, England
Kate Davies Senior Lecturer in Non-Medical Prescribing, London South Bank University and honorary research fellow in paediatric endocrinology, Barts and The London School of Medicine and Dentistry, Queen Mary University of London, London, England

Why you should read this article:
  • To enhance your knowledge of the normal development and functioning of the liver

  • To increase your awareness of the clinical features of childhood liver disease

  • To count towards revalidation as part of your 35 hours of CPD, or you may wish to write a reflective account (UK readers)

  • To contribute towards your professional development and local registration renewal requirements (non-UK readers)

This article is the ninth in a series on the biological basis of child health and follows on from the previous article, which discussed the gastrointestinal system. The liver is the largest solid organ in the body and has more than 500 functions. These functions include: producing bile, which serves as a vehicle for waste products and as an aid for the digestion of dietary fat; synthesising most coagulation factors, needed in the clotting cascade; and transforming glycogen into glucose for use as energy in cell metabolism. While most liver conditions seen in children are rare, it is important that children’s nurses can identify the clinical features of childhood liver disease. This article provides an overview of the embryological development of the liver, its anatomy and functions, liver function tests in children, and the clinical features and pathophysiology of childhood liver disease.

Nursing Children and Young People. doi: 10.7748/ncyp.2021.e1258

Peer review

This article has been subject to open peer review and has been checked for plagiarism using automated software

@sausmash

Correspondence

kate.davies@lsbu.ac.uk

Conflict of interest

None declared

Archer S, Davies K (2021) Biological basis of child health 9: development of the liver and clinical features of childhood liver disease. Nursing Children and Young People. doi: 10.7748/ncyp.2021.e1258

Published online: 08 March 2021

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