Liver disease

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Hepatic disease
Non-alcoholic fatty liver disease1.jpg
Classification and external resources
Specialty Gastroenterology
MedlinePlus 000205
Patient UK Liver disease
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Liver disease (also called hepatic disease) is a type of damage to or disease of the liver.[1]

Associated medical conditions

Types

Ground glass hepatocytes
Primary biliary cirrhosis
Budd-chiari syndrome

There are more than a hundred kinds of liver disease, these are some of the most common:[2]

Mechanism

Liver disease can occur through several mechanisms. A common form of liver disease is viral infection. Viral hepatitides such as Hepatitis B virus and Hepatitis C virus can be vertically transmitted during birth via contact with infected blood.[18][19] According to a 2012 NICE publication, "about 85% of hepatitis B infections in newborns become chronic".[20] In occult cases, Hepatitis B virus is present by HBV DNA, but testing for HBsAg is negative.[21] High consumption of alcohol can lead to several forms of liver disease including alcoholic hepatitis, alcoholic fatty liver disease, cirrhosis, and liver cancer.[22] In the earlier stages of alcoholic liver disease, fat builds up in the liver's cells due to increased creation of triglycerides and fatty acids and a decreased ability to break down fatty acids.[23] Progression of the disease can lead to liver inflammation from the excess fat in the liver. Scarring in the liver often occurs as the body attempts to heal and extensive scarring can lead to the development of cirrhosis in more advanced stages of the disease.[23] Approximately 3-10% of individuals with cirrhosis develop a form of liver cancer known as hepatocellular carcinoma.[23]

Diagnosis

A number of liver function tests (LFTs) are available to test the proper function of the liver. These test for the presence of enzymes in blood that are normally most abundant in liver tissue, metabolites or products. serum proteins, serum albumin, serum globulin, alanine transaminase, aspartate transaminase, prothrombin time, partial thromboplastin time.[24]

Treatment

Ursodeoxycholic acid

Anti-viral medications are available to treat infections such as hepatitis B.[25] Other conditions may be managed by slowing down disease progression, for example:

  • By using steroid-based drugs in autoimmune hepatitis.[26]
  • Regularly removing a quantity of blood from a vein (venesection) in the iron overload condition, hemochromatosis.[27]
  • Wilson’s disease, a condition where copper builds up in the body, can be managed with drugs which bind copper allowing it to be passed from your body in urine.[28]
  • In cholestatic liver disease, (where the flow of bile is affected due to cystic fibrosis[29]) a medication called ursodeoxycholic acid (URSO, also referred to as UDCA) may be given.[30]

References

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Further reading

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