[Need of updating hepatological nosology].

The nosological classification of chronic liver disease (CLD) seems to be unsatisfactory when clinical problems are faced such as the liver cirrhosis-diabetes mellitus and the autoimmune diseases-primary biliary cirrhosis (PBC) associations; the concept of PBC as a systemic disease; the multiorgan involvement of chronic active hepatitis. Accordingly, the Authors hypothesize that the present histopathological-based nosology of CLD will be modified as a result of a better understanding of the varied metabolic and immunologic derangements induced by CLD.