Monday, March 12, 2012

Alcoholic liver disease

Alcoholic liver disease is liver damage that occurs as a result of excessive alcohol intake.


Alcoholic liver disease is a common health problem that can be prevented. Generally, the amount of alcohol drunk (how much and how often) determines the risk and degree of liver damage. Women are more vulnerable to liver damage than men. Women who drink for years and so a small amount such as about 19 g of pure alcohol per day (184 g of wine, 370 g of beer or about 57 g of whiskey) may cause liver damage. The men who drink, and the relevant quantities as small as about 57 g per day (567 g of wine, beer 1134 g or 170 g of whiskey) can damage the liver. However, the amount of alcohol that damages the liver varies from person to person.


Alcohol may cause three types of liver damage: fat accumulation (fatty liver), inflammation (alcoholic hepatitis) and scarring of the liver (cirrhosis).


Obtain alcohol and calories without the essential nutrients, reduces appetite and causes poor absorption of nutrients due to its toxic effects on the gut and pancreas. As a result, people who regularly drink alcohol and not food appropriate, develop poor nutritional status (malnutrition).


Symptoms and diagnosis

Generally, the symptoms depend on how long and how much people drank. Heavy consumers of alcohol usually develop their first symptoms during their 30-ies with a tendency to strive for problems arising in their 40's it was.In men, alcohol can produce effects similar to those that occur because of too much estrogen and too little testosterone, stunted testicles and breast enlargement.


People with liver damage due to fat accumulation (fatty liver) usually have no symptoms. The third of these people, the liver is enlarged and sometimes sensitive.


Inflammation of the liver caused by alcohol (alcoholic hepatitis) can cause fever, jaundice, increase in the number of white blood cells and sensitive, painful, enlarged liver. The skin may occur similar to spider veins (so-called spider nevi).

A person with liver damage with scar changes (cirrhosis) may have few symptoms or a picture of alcoholic hepatitis.Such a person can have complications of alcoholic cirrhosis: the portal hypertension with an increase in the spleen, ascites (fluid accumulation in the abdominal cavity), kidney failure due to liver failure (hepatorenal syndrome), confusion (one of the main symptoms of hepatic encephalopathy) or liver cancer (hepato).


In some cases, to confirm the diagnosis of alcoholic disease, the doctor did a liver biopsy. In this procedure the skin is put through a hollow needle and takes a small piece of liver tissue for examination under a microscope.


In people with alcoholic liver disease, liver function test results may be normal or abnormal. However, the level in the blood of a liver enzyme, gamma-glutamyl transpeptidase in people who abuse alcohol can be particularly high.In addition, red blood cells (erythrocytes) are higher than normal, a sign informer. Platelet count may be low.



Prognosis and treatment

If the person continues to drinking alcohol, liver damage will progress and possibly end up deadly. If a person stops drinking, something of liver damage (other than scar tissue) can only recover and there are good chances that the person lives longer.



The treatment of alcoholic liver disease only helps stop drinking alcohol. This conduct can be extremely difficult, so most people should participate in an elaborate program of cessation of drinking (alcohol withdrawal).

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