Do You Know About Liver Disease....

Liver is the largest organ inside the human body. It performs 500 different functions and processes 720 liters of blood per day. The important functions of the liver, the development of liver cancer and it’s symptoms are presented in this interactive.

What is liver disease?  

Liver disease is any disturbance of liver function that causes illness. The liver is responsible for many critical functions within the body and should it become diseased or injured, the loss of those functions can cause significant damage to the body. Liver disease is also referred to as hepatic disease.

Liver disease is a broad term that covers all the potential problems that causes the liver to fail to perform its designated functions. Usually, more than 75% or three quarters of liver tissue needs to be affected before decrease in function occurs.

The liver is the largest solid organ in the body; and is also considered a gland because among its many functions, it makes and secretes bile. The liver is located in the upper right portion of the abdomen protected by the rib cage. It has two main lobes that are made up of tiny lobules. The liver cells have two different sources of blood supply. The hepatic artery supplies oxygen rich blood that is pumped from the heart, while the portal vein supplies nutrients from the intestine and the spleen.

Normally, veins return blood from the body to the heart, but the portal vein allows chemicals from the digestive tract to enter the liver for "detoxification" and filtering prior to entering the general circulation. The portal vein also efficiently delivers the chemicals and proteins that liver cells need to produce the proteins, cholesterol, and glycogen required for normal body activities.

abdomen protected by the rib cage. It has two main lobes that are made up of tiny lobules. The liver cells have two different sources of blood supply. The hepatic artery supplies oxygen rich blood that is pumped from the heart, while the portal vein supplies nutrients from the intestine and the spleen.

Normally, veins return blood from the body to the heart, but the portal vein allows chemicals from the digestive tract to enter the liver for "detoxification" and filtering prior to entering the general circulation. The portal vein also efficiently delivers the chemicals and proteins that liver cells need to produce the proteins, cholesterol, and glycogen required for normal body activities.

Liver Disease Symptoms

1. Classic symptoms of liver disease include:
2. Nausea
3. vomiting,
4. right upper quadrant abdominal pain, and
5. jaundice (a yellow discoloration of the skin due to elevated bilirubin concentrations in the bloodstream).
6. Fatigue, weakness and weight loss may also occur.
7. However, since there are a variety of liver diseases, the symptoms tend to be specific for that illness until late-stage liver disease and liver failure occurs.

What are the causes of liver disease?

The liver can be damaged in a variety of ways.

·         Cells can become inflamed (such as in hepatitis: hepar=liver + itis=inflammation).

·         Bile flow can be obstructed (such as in cholestasis: chole=bile + stasis=standing).

·         Cholesterol or triglycerides can accumulate (such as in steatosis; steat=fat + osis=accumulation).

·         Blood flow to the liver may be compromised.

·         Liver tissue can be damaged by chemicals and minerals, or infiltrated by abnormal cells.

Alcohol abuse

Alcohol abuse is the most common cause of liver disease in North America. Alcohol is directly toxic to liver cells and can cause liver inflammation, referred to as alcoholic hepatitis. In chronic alcohol abuse, fat accumulation.

Cirrhosis

Cirrhosis is a late-stage of liver disease. Scarring of the liver and loss of functioning liver cells cause the liver to fail.

Additional Information....

1. Liver disease is any abnormal process that affects the liver. The more severe the liver disease, the greater the effect on liver function. It is true that with the loss of 75% of the liver's function the liver cannot keep up with its required functions and it begins to fail.
2. Alcohol abuse is the most common cause of liver disease in North America. Alcohol is directly toxic to liver cells and can cause inflammation, referred to as alcoholic hepatitis and cirrhosis due to extreme scarring of the liver.
3. Jaundice is a sign of liver, gallbladder, or certain blood disorders. Bilirubin, normally removed from the blood by the liver and excreted in bile and stool, increases in the blood. The skin and the eyes become yellow due to the buildup of bilirubin in the skin and "whites" of the eyes (sclera). The urine becomes dark from the excretion of bilirubin in the urine, and the stool becomes clay-colored due to the absence of bilirubin.
4. The liver the largest solid organ in the body; it also is considered a gland because, among its many functions, it makes and secretes bile.
5. Acetaminophen (such as Tylenol) in excess can cause liver failure that often is permanent and results in death. Numerous antibiotics and statins (cholesterol-controlling medications) may cause liver inflammation and failure. Excessive amounts of vitamin A can cause hepatitis, cirrhosis, and liver failure. Additionally, many mushrooms are poisonous to the liver, and eating unidentified mushrooms gathered in the woods can be lethal due to liver failure.
6. Yes, hepatitis is a form of liver disease. The term hepatitis means "inflammation of the liver," and liver cells can become inflamed for many reasons, including alcohol, drugs, toxins, and infections. Recall from question 1: Liver disease is any abnormal process that affects the liver.
7. Cirrhosis is a late-stage of liver disease. Diseases that lead to cirrhosis injure and kill liver cells. Inflammation and repair associated with the dying liver cells causes scar tissue to form. Progressive scarring leads to cirrhosis. Liver failure and liver cancer are complications of cirrhosis.
8. Liver biopsy (in which a sample of liver tissue is removed and analyzed under the microscope) is the only test that can confirm a diagnosis of cirrhosis.
9. Hepatitis C is the most common cause of chronic viral hepatitis in the U.S. It is passed from person to person sexually, particularly through male homosexual activities and by use of illicit, injectable drugs. It also may be passed from mother to infant at the time of birth. Hepatitis B is the second most common cause of chronic hepatitis in the U.S. Hepatitis D is a chronic viral infection of the liver but occurs only in a small proportion of individuals with chronic hepatitis B. Hepatitis A and E cause primarily acute hepatitis and not chronic hepatitis.
10. Blood clotting, Elimination of water, salt, drugs, and toxins from the body and Manufacture of blood proteins. The liver is a critical organ for many bodily functions. Interference with liver function results in excessive bleeding, jaundice, sensitivity to the effects of drugs, and toxic effects on the brain(encephalopathy). Interference with the production of blood proteins and the elimination of water and salt result in the accumulation of fluid in the tissues of the body, referred to as edema.
11. The liver is part of the digestive system. Organs responsible for ingesting, processing, and removing food from the body are considered digestive organs; and include the salivary glands, the mouth, esophagus, stomach, small intestine, liver, gallbladder, pancreas, colon, rectum, and anus.
12. The liver itself does not sense pain. Because of this, the liver can be cut, burned, or compressed without causing the sensation of pain. Inside the tissue that encapsulates the liver, there are pain fibers which are stimulated when the liver is stretched. This means that anything the causes the liver to stretch (such as inflammation) can cause liver pain.

Collection by M.Ajmal Khan.