This issue of the Medical Clinics of North America brings the practicing clinician up to date on best practices of caring for the cirrhotic patient. Topics covered include diagnosis and epidemiology of cirrhosis; ascites: diagnosis and management; encephalopathy: pathophysiology and emerging therapies; portal hypertensive bleeding; renal failure: differential diagnosis and management; pulmonary complications; hepatocellular carcinoma: current state of treatment; preventative health issues; pre-operative risk assessment; and liver transplantation: from Child's to MELD.