Liver Cirrhosis Clinical Features – Agrawal Gastrocare Center Indore
What is Liver Cirrhosis?
Cirrhosis is the severe scarring of the liver. This scarring of the liver is permanent and is mostly caused by long-term intake of toxins such as alcohol, exposure to viral infections, hepatitis and non-alcoholic fatty liver disease. This type of disease mainly affects the liver system of the human body.
Clinical features of Liver Cirrhosis
At first, you may not have any symptoms. But as the time passes and the damage to the liver starts becoming more worse, you may notice things like:
- Weakness and fatigue
- Weight loss and lack of appetite
- Nausea
- Bleeding
- Swelling in your legs or belly
Some skin changes
- Jaundice
- Intense itching
- Redness in your palms
Some other serious symptoms you might get include:
- Vomiting blood
- Fever
- Severe muscle cramps
- Brownish urine
Diagnose of Liver Cirrhosis
Cirrhosis is first detected through a routine blood test. To help confirm a diagnosis, different types of tests are performed.
- Laboratory test: Your doctor may suggest some blood tests to check signs of liver malfunctioning, like excess bilirubin, also for certain enzymes that may indicate liver damage. You can be checked for hepatitis viruses. Your International Normalized Ratio (INR) is also checked for your blood’s ability to clot.
- Imaging test: Magnetic resonance elastography (MRE) is recommended for testing. This test detects the hardening or stiffening of the liver. There are some other tests like MRI, CT and Ultrasound which are also done.
- Biopsy: This is not needed for diagnosis but your doctor may use it to find the cause of liver damage.
Treatment of Liver Cirrhosis
Treatment of liver cirrhosis depends on the cause and extent of your liver damage. The treatment is done to treat symptoms and complications of cirrhosis.
- Treatment for alcohol dependency
- Treatment for weight loss
- Medication to control hepatitis
- Treatment of portal hypertension
- Infections
Conclusion
Many people suffer from liver cirrhosis and as there is no permanent cure for this disease so taking out time for yourself and self-care could lead to reducing the effects of the disease and reduce the tension as well as improve the mental strength of the patient.
