Sudden (acute) liver failure and Wilson’s disease

Tests for Wilson’s disease in acute liver failure

Anyone aged 4 or older with sudden liver failure should be tested for Wilson’s disease.

Doctors will look for signs and symptoms of Wilson’s disease including:

• A type of anaemia called Coombs-negative haemolysis. This can be found using a blood test.
• A copper-coloured ring around the coloured part of the eye called a Kayser-Fleischer ring (KF ring). This can be found with a special eye test.
• Brain problems caused by Wilson’s disease. These can be found using an MRI scan.

Genetic testing can confirm Wilsons disease if other tests suggest it might be the cause of the acute liver failure.

• Find out more about testing for Wilson’s disease in children
• Find out more about testing for Wilson’s disease in adults

Back to top

Treatment for Wilson’s disease in acute liver failure

People with acute liver failure need urgent treatment and careful monitoring. Adults are usually admitted to intensive care. Children with acute liver failure will usually be transferred to a specialist centre.

Specialist medical teams look after people with acute liver failure. Their first aim is to make you medically stable. They will also find out what is causing your liver to fail, so it can be treated.

If someone has acute liver failure that might be caused by Wilson’s disease they should start treatment straight away. Even if all the test results have not come back.

The treatment will focus on trying to get rid of the extra copper that has built up in the liver. But in some cases an urgent liver transplant is needed.

• Find out more about treatments for Wilson’s disease
• Find out more about liver transplants

Back to top

Next:

Tests for Wilson’s disease in children

Tests for Wilson’s disease in adults

Everyone’s experience of Wilson’s disease will be different. Always talk to your specialist medical team for personal advice.

Our information aims to be clear, up-to-date, and useful. We work with people living with liver disease and clinicians to make our information.

• How we make our information 

Share your thoughts on this information

If you have any feedback or would like a full list of references, you can also let us know by emailing patient-info@britishlivertrust.org.uk.

Clinical reviewer: Dr William Griffiths, consultant hepatologist, Cambridge University Hospitals NHS foundation trust.

Publication date: December 2025

Next review: December 2028