Hepatoprotection or antihepatotoxicity is the ability of a chemical substance to prevent damage to the liver. This is opposite to hepatotoxicity.

Hepatoprotective molecules used in emergency medicine

  • Acetylcysteine is considered the hepatoprotective drug of choice when treating an overdose of acetaminophen/paracetamol.
  • Silymarin is given intravenously to treat poisoning from Amanita mushrooms according to the Santa Cruz protocol devised by Dr Todd Mitchell at UCSC.

Herbs with potentially hepatoprotective constituents