Autoimmune hepatitis. Light micrograph of a section through a liver affected by autoimmune hepatitis. Hepatitis is inflammation of the liver. It may occur with limited or no symptoms but often leads to yellowing of the skin (jaundice), poor appetite and malaise. Autoimmune (or lupoid) hepatitis occurs when the body's immune system attacks the liver. Treatment involves the prescription of immunosuppressive drugs with remission occurring in up to 60-80 percent of cases, although many eventually relapse.