Slideshow: Symptoms of Liver Problems

Alcoholic liver disease results from overconsuming alcohol, damaging the liver and leading to a buildup of fats, inflammation, and scarring. Doctors also refer to compensated cirrhosis, where damage is present, but the liver is functioning; and decompensated cirrhosis, where damage affects liver function. The score helps give an idea of the person’s outlook. Category C, or end-stage liver disease, is potentially fatal. You could also have some sort of blood disorders such as a clotting disorder, blood cancer , hemophilia, Cushing’s syndrome, orVon Willebrand’s disease. This why it’s important to note any additional symptoms such as unexplained weight loss, chills, or fevers. Whether your disease is mild or severe, your liver will be happier if you quit.

Since you may not have any symptoms in the early stages of the disease, cirrhosis is often detected through routine blood tests or checkups. If your doctor find something suspicious, further blood tests may be necessary. These can help identify how extensive your cirrhosis is by checking for liver malfunction, liver damage, or screening for causes of cirrhosis such as hepatitis viruses. Based on the results, your doctor maybe able to diagnose the underlying cause of cirrhosis. They may also recommend imaging tests like an MR elastogram that checks for scarring in the liver, or an MRI of the abdomen, CT scan or an ultrasound. A biopsy may also be required to identify the severity, extent and cause of liver damage. Athletes participating in contact sports are at an increased risk for liver injury. A direct hit to the organ is the most common cause of a liver injury.

Liver Damage Symptoms Your Doctor Wants You to Know About

That’s what happens with autoimmune hepatitis and primary biliary cirrhosis. Treatment to curb the immune system’s reaction may help. Hepatitis and other viruses can cause acute or chronic damage to your liver. Some liver problems are related to diseases and other health conditions. Others have to do with your lifestyle, which you have some control over — like how much you drink and how much you exercise. Although rare, pregnancy may contribute to liver problems. This workhorse doesn’t get the respect it deserves.

Specifically, lesions from gastroesophageal varices are formed. This happens due to decreased blood flow to the liver, causing the veins in the esophagus, stomach, and rectum to become enlarged. As the elevated pressure continues to expand the veins, the vein walls become stretched too thin and they can rupture, causing potentially life-threatening bleeding. It is often caused by elevated pressure in the blood vessels in and around the liver as well as decreased liver function. It’s easy to see how serious complications, including liver failure, can develop as a result of cirrhosis. If you’re concerned about your risk of liver cirrhosis, talk to your doctor about ways you can reduce your risk.

What side is your liver on?

Many types of liver diseases and conditions injure healthy liver cells, causing cell death and inflammation. This is followed by cell repair and finally tissue scarring as a result of the repair process. This article explores the early signs and symptoms of alcoholic liver disease, its stages, causes, risk factors, treatments, and prevention. While the symptoms are the same — including jaundice, pain, and upset stomach — acute liver failure takes only weeks or even days. Pain can come both from the diseases that lead to cirrhosis and/or cirrhosis can make the pain from existing diseases worse. For instance, if you have non-alcoholic fatty liver disease and have obesity, you may also have osteoarthritis and cirrhosis makes your bone and joint pain worse. Cirrhosis also causes an inflammatory state in your entire body.

Portal hypertension can cause lung problems, such as widening of the blood vessels in the lungs. This causes the blood to move too swiftly through the lungs to pick up enough oxygen. It can be comforting to know that you will get the type of care you want. Small red spots and tiny lines on the skin called spider angiomas. Inherited diseases, such as Wilson’s disease, cystic fibrosis, or hemochromatosis. This can lead to severe bleeding in the digestive tract and other serious problems. The American Cancer Society offers programs and services to help you during and after cancer treatment. We can also help you find other free or low-cost resources available. Whether you want to learn about treatment options, get advice on coping with side effects, or have questions about health insurance, we’re here to help.

Bruised liver symptoms

Learn how you can help promote awareness of the progression of liver disease. Not smoking and controlling body weight are significant lifestyle changes people can make to further reduce the risk. Antirejection medications after transplant can increase the risk of serious infections and certain cancers. Those who regularly drink more than the recommended daily limits of alcohol should not stop drinking without medical support. Individuals should seek help from a medical professional to safely manage alcohol withdrawal. The outlook will depend on various factors, including the cause of cirrhosis and the stage at diagnosis. In the United States, 4.5 million people, or 1.8% of the adult population, have liver disease. Cirrhosis accounts for 15.8 deaths in every 100,000. Symptoms rarely appear in the early stages, so diagnosis often occurs when testing for another condition or disease. Some medicines can cause bruising by decreasing blood clotting.

The first step in treating any level of alcoholic liver disease focuses on removing alcohol from the diet. Once the alcoholic liver disease progresses, its symptoms become easier to recognize. It can be easy for someone to dismiss the early Sober House symptoms as the effects of a stomach bug or general malaise. However, leaving these symptoms undiagnosed and untreated — especially while continuing to consume alcohol — can lead to a faster progression of liver disease over time.

Treatment for complications of cirrhosis

The urgency of treatment depends on whether liver failure is acute or chronic, but the principles of treatment are the same. To check for possible causes, doctors ask about all substances that people have taken, including prescription and over-the-counter drugs, herbal products, and nutritional supplements. Blood tests are also done to identify possible causes. View your health information including your medications, test results, scheduled appointments, medical bills even if you have multiple doctors in different locations. The symptoms depend on how your liver was injured and how severe the injury is.

Our doctors define difficult medical language in easy-to-understand explanations of over 19,000 medical terms. MedTerms online medical dictionary provides quick access to hard-to-spell and often misspelled medical definitions through an extensive alphabetical listing. Liver disease can cause urine to darken significantly. Ironically, it also causes the lightening of stools.

Another symptom of early liver failure is feeling tired or fatigued, explains Dr. Mareiness. Nausea and vomiting are another sign of early liver failure, per Dr. Mareiniss. The liver is a large, meaty organ that sits on the right side of the belly. See a picture of the Liver and learn more about the health liver damage and bruising topic. Liver Damage Causes Alcohol and acetaminophen are well-known liver dangers, but what else can be harmful? Steroid medicines if the cause is an autoimmune disease. This causes permanent scarring of the liver, causing it to become hard and lumpy. Is particularly bad for people who have liver problems.

• The Pediatric End-stage Liver Disease score is similar to MELD but is a scoring system for children under the age of 12.
• Learn the signs and symptoms of fatty liver disease, whether it is alcoholic or nonalcoholic in origin.
• Blood tests are also done to identify possible causes.
• Common causes include alcohol abuse, hepatitis and nonalcoholic fatty liver disease.
• Because the liver is the only organ in the body that regenerates, or grows back, a transplanted segment of the liver can grow to a normal size within a few months.

Ask your doctor for help getting into a treatment program. To help prevent liver disease, limit yourself to no more than one drink per day for women, two for men. Your doctor will start with blood tests to see how well your liver is working. They may use ultrasounds, CT scans, and MRIs to get a look at it and check for damage.
Verywell Health’s content is for informational and educational purposes only. Our website is not intended to be a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment. Sharing needles and having unprotected sex can increase your risk of hepatitis B and C. Choose a plant-based diet that’s full of fruits and vegetables. Reduce the amount of fatty and fried foods you eat. Some people end up experiencing multiorgan failure. Researchers now believe this is a distinct complication in some people who have cirrhosis, but they don’t fully understand its causes.

Consequently, even when you know liver pain location, several other types of living tissues and processes occurring in this area could account for the pain. Still, it’s worth pointing out that 82% of people with cirrhosis report pain. A liver transplant is usually considered only when liver damage is severe and threatening your life. Treatment may include medicines, surgery, or other options, depending on the cause of your cirrhosis and what problems it is causing.

Some people with cirrhosis have normal liver enzymes. Aspartate aminotransferase , alanine aminotransferase , and lactate dehydrogenase . An increased level of these enzymes may mean injury to the liver and the death of liver cells. Liver disease can cause a decrease in protein levels in the blood. Bleeding from enlarged veins in the digestive tract. If you feel very sad or hopeless, be sure to tell your doctor. You may be able to get counseling or other types of help. Talking with other people who have cirrhosis can be a big help. Palliative care is a kind of care for people who have serious illnesses.