 The hepatic venous pressure gradient, (difference in venous pressure between afferent and efferent blood to the liver) also determines the severity of cirrhosis, although it is hard to measure.A value of 16 mm or more means a greatly increased risk of death.Key prevention strategies for cirrhosis are population-wide interventions to reduce alcohol intake (through pricing strategies, public health campaigns, and personal counseling), programs to reduce the transmission of viral hepatitis, and screening of relatives of people with hereditary liver diseases.