Spontaneous Bacterial Peritonitis and Other Infections in Cirrhosis.

The spontaneous bacterial infections that commonly occur in the setting of advanced liver disease include spontaneous bacterial peritonitis (SBP) and spontaneous bacteremia (SB). SBP occurs only in the setting of liver disease: usually advanced cirrhosis, severe subacute liver injury (e.g., alcoholic hepatitis), or fulminant liver failure. All cirrhotic patients with ascites can develop SBP. The prevalence of SBP in unselected cirrhotic patients with ascites admitted to a hospital ranges between 10 and 30% (1-3). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]