Diagnosis of avian hepatic disease

Hepatic disease is commonly diagnosed in both unwell and apparently healthy birds in veterinary practice. The clinical presentation of birds with hepatic disease is remarkably variable, without consistent or characteristic clinical signs. Most clinicopathologic tests that support a diagnosis of hepatic disease in mammals are less specific or not applicable in birds, resulting in difficulty in achieving an etiological diagnosis. A systematic approach using a range of assays and procedures, with awareness of the strengths and inaccuracies of each, will increase the ability to make an etiological diagnosis, and subsequently to provide accurate prognostication and allow specific management to be undertaken. Copyright (C) 2000 by W. B. Saunders Company.