Hepatobiliary disorders are a major cause of morbidity and mortality among Indians. Such patients need specialized diagnostic skills, laboratory evaluation and management strategies. These disorders have genetic, familial, metabolic, infective, neoplastic immune-mediated and environmental origin.
Spectrum of liver diseases is very wide and variable. Liver diseases are difficult to manage, have complicated course and poor outcomes. There is need of separate specialists and experts devoted to management of liver diseases. Moreover with new investigations, therapeutic interventions, newer drugs and techniques, approach to patients with liver diseases have become an independent, time consuming process. Therefore, Hepatology assumes importance as a dedicated specialty to generate skilled manpower to widen the scope of better patient care in India.