Symptoms of Cirrhosis - Essay Example

Cirrhosis Disease Introduction Cirrhosis is characterized as the scarring of the liver. The scar tissues are formed as the result of a long term disease or any kind of injury. The functions of the scar tissues are same as that of healthy liver tissues i.e. they fight against infection, make protein, store energy, help in the digestion of food and clean the human blood. Cirrhosis may lead to easy bleeding and bruising, jaundice, stones in gallbladder, kidney failure, veins enlargement (especially of liver and esophagus) and increase sensitivity towards medicine. If the conditions worsen cirrhosis may lead to liver cancer as well (Cirrhosis, 2014). Causes of disease process Some of the common causes of cirrhosis are long term consumption of alcohol, disease of fatty liver and infection as the result of hepatitis A and B. According to the National Health Service UK, the excessive consumption of alcohol is considered to be when man consumes about 21 units whereas woman consumes about 14 units of alcohol per week. Alcohol and other toxins break down in the liver and therefore if the consumption of alcohol is very high than the work of the liver increases, which eventually damages the liver cells. Hepatitis C which is considered to be a blood borne infection eventually damages the liver causing cirrhosis. In North American and Western Europe hepatitis is considered to be one of the common causes of Cirrhosis. Hepatitis B and D may also cause Cirrhosis. Sometimes a person’s own immune system attacks the healthy organ of the body like some foreign substances. When the foreign substance attacks the liver, it may cause Cirrhosis (Nordqvist, 2013). Symptoms Symptoms can be defined as something that a person feels and then reports it to the doctor. On the other hand a sign is something that can be easily detected by the doctor or nurse. For example pain may be categorized as a symptoms whereas rash may be considered as a sign. Usually the symptoms are not quite common during the early stage of Cirrhosis. However when the scar tissues accumulate in the liver they affect its efficiency. The symptoms and signs of Cirrhosis can be itchy skin, loss of appetite, insomnia, fatigue, nausea, visible blood capillaries, loss of weight, blotchy palms and pain in the area. As the disease progresses the other symptoms and signs that appear can include accelerated heartbeat, dizziness, confusion, vomiting blood, bleeding from the nose, short memory, jaundice, hair loss, fever, muscle cramps, panting, change in color of urine and bleeding gums (Cirrhosis - Symptoms, 2013). Diagnosis Cirrhosis can be diagnosed in its early stage by testing the patients with the symptoms of the disease. A person developing symptoms such as vomiting blood, dark stool, fever with shivering, panting, confusion and drowsiness should consult a doctor immediately. A general practitioner or a primary care physician would examine the patient developing symptoms of Cirrhosis. They would also examine the area round the liver in order to find out that whether it has enlarged or not. The patients would also be questioned for their medical history and about their drinking habits. The blood tests also help in diagnosing Cirrhosis as they determine that how efficiently the liver is functioning and determine that whether or not the liver is damage. If the reports suggest that the level of Alanine Transaminase is high then there are chances that the person may have hepatitis. Imaging test may also be effective in diagnosing the disease as it involves ultrasound. Treatments Damage could be minimized if Cirrhosis is diagnosed at an early stage. If a person diagnosed with Cirrhosis is an alcoholic then the doctor would recommend the patient to immediately stop consuming alcohol and may also recommend the patient the treatment for alcoholism. Patients may also be prescribed drugs that would minimize the damage of liver cells caused by hepatitis B or C. Ascites and Edema is also an effective treatment for Cirrhosis. The patients going through this treatment are treated with water pills and low sodium diet. Infection that results from Cirrhosis can be treated by the help of antibiotics. In some serious cases if a patient suffers liver failure then he or she may need a liver transplant. If a patient is passing dark stool or vomits blood then there are chances that he or she is suffering from esophageal varices. Such patients require immediate medical attention. In such case procedures such as banding, transjugular intrahepatic portosysmetic stent shunt or (TIPSS) and injecting sclerotherapy can be effective. The patients diagnosed with Cirrhosis are at a higher risk of developing blood cancer and therefore they must be recommended regular imaging scan and blood tests. Although Cirrhosis cannot be completely cured but early diagnosis may minimize the risk. Prevention The consumption of alcohol must not exceed the weekly limits i.e. 21 units per week for man and 14 units per week for women. Patients diagnosed with Cirrhosis must abstain from the consumption of alcohol as it speeds the progression of the disease. New and sterilized needles must be used for injecting drugs. People, who are exposed to the risk of Cirrhosis such as social and health care workers and policemen must be fully vaccinated against them (Nordqvist, 2013). Statistics About 600,000 people die annually as the result of Acute Cirrhosis and about 240 million people have long term liver infection. In America alone around 31,000 people die of Cirrhosis, mainly due to chronic Hepatitis C and liver damage due to alcohol. Current research Progress in the prevention and management of Cirrhosis is still going on. Research is still being conducting for determining the formation of scar in liver and how can scarring be reversed or interrupted. Researchers are working to introduce better and newer treatment of Cirrhosis in order to prevent it. Vaccines for preventing Hepatitis B are already present whereas researchers are working on the vaccination of Hepatitis C. Finally, a research is being conducted for identifying a new protein present in the blood which may detect liver cancer at an early stage and may also predict which patients are at a risk for developing liver cancer. References Cirrhosis - Symptoms. (2013). Retrieved January 24, 2014, from WebMD: http://www.webmd.com/digestive-disorders/tc/cirrhosis-symptoms Cirrhosis. (2014). Retrieved January 24, 2014, from Medline Plus: http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/cirrhosis.html#cat5 Nordqvist, C. (2013). What Is Cirrhosis? What Causes Cirrhosis? Retrieved January 24, 2014, from Liver Cirrohosis Diet: http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/172295.php Read More