Liver Problems That Occur Due to Alcoholism

Liver plays an essential role in giving you a healthful life. When you abuse it with junks, especially – alcohol, it starts getting weaker with every other peg. Over alcoholism not only makes you face several embarrassing situations in your life, but also it brings many a diseases your way. The following points explain the health problems that people face when they practice alcoholism –

Vomiting – You went to your friend’s place, and gulped bottles of rum, as a happiness gesture of reunion. Meeting friends and celebrating friendship are some of the most precious moments of our lives, but it isn’t wise to waste the precious moment this way! The outcome of those many bottles of rum will possibly be ‘vomiting’. And vomiting can be seen as a sign that your liver is not accepting your behavior, and requesting you to STOP!

Abdominal Pain – When you make it a habit of over consuming these dark beverages, a signal in form of abdominal pain or palpitations starts coming over. If you do not stop, the intensity of pain rises, and things may get worse for your health.

Fever, Body Pain – Because of the aforementioned states, people may also experience fever and muscular/joint pain. Fever mostly comes because of over vomiting, abdominal pain. And muscular and joint pains germinate because of fever. Changes in the color and smell of urine and stool may also occur.

Liver Damage – A prolonged practice of alcoholism may also result in liver damage. In this condition, many other syndromes can happen with the patient. Doctors suggest liver transplant for alcoholics whose liver has been damaged badly.

Importance of Liver Transplant Compatibility

Organ transplant is a crucial decision for the patient (or the recipient) and the donor of the organ. In cases of liver transplant, which is the only possible solution for organ failure and damage, it is very important to check the compatibility of donor and recipient. It is called the liver transplant compatibility, in which a number of aspects of both the persons are evaluated. These factors are – (for living donors)

Health Condition – The physical condition of the donor should be sound and well. Additionally, the liver should also be in a good condition so that it can support the recipient after the transplant. Various tests are done to check the health of the donor and the liver before the surgery. The donor should not have any critical diseases, like Hepatitis, Jaundice, Heart diseases, diabetes, etc.

Blood Group – Most importantly, both the giver and the receiver should have the same blood group. To avoid further complications, matching the blood groups is an important exercise.

Physique – The donor should have a similar or healthier physique than the recipient. His/her organs should be healthy enough to endure the transplant, and assist the body system of the patient. Particularly, here the term ‘healthy’ does not imply that the giver should be obese or fatty.

Hepatitis B: Treatment & Medication

The disease Hepatitis B is a virus infection that affects your liver and digestion system. At times, it starts as a simple problem like disinterest in food and weakness, and the sufferer may not have even a single symptom of the disease, but with the passage of time, it turns out to be a critical illness, which in most cases can claim the life of the sufferer. But, under the supervision of an expert medical practitioner, one can easily come out from the epidemic of Hep B virus.

If you have been diagnosed with this bug, there is no need to worry about. There is available Hepatitis B treatment in India. The government has also established special cells in government owned hospitals to provide treatment for this decisive ailment. Following are the treatments and medication that a patient is procured with –

Antiviral Medicines – Usually, Hepatitis B virus approach a human body system in form of viral infection. When the immune system turns weak because of the viral, the symptoms of Hep B germinate. Epivir, Hepsera, telbivudine, etc. are the most prescribed Antiviral medicines for the patients of Hepatitis B.

Liver Transplant – Liver transplant is the only solution for the sufferers, who are in the last-stage of the disease, and whose liver has completely or partially has stopped working.

To be on the safer side, it is advisable to visit your family doctor, or your nearest hospital, whenever you do not feel well. It becomes paramount when you sense some irregularity in urine and stool, and acute pain in the abdominal parts of your body.

Successful Liver Transplantation in India

A liver transplant is an operation to remove a damaged or diseased liver and replace it with a healthy one.  Liver transplantation can be done with a part of a liver from a living donor or from a deceased donor. Although liver transplant is considered as the last and final option for patients with last stage of liver disease and with that hope Liver transplantation in India was developed as an efficient and established treatment for last stage liver disease. The first pediatric liver transplantation in India were performed in the beginning of the year 1998 and since then many centers of liver transplant have established for this successful programs it offers liver patients best hope for a second chance at life.

Liver transplant in India has become the boon of life if it is done for the right reason, by the right people and at the right time. With remarkable improvement in the advanced surgical techniques and with improved immunosuppressant more than 90 percent patient recovery and survival rate has become possible in most centers of liver transplant.

 A patient who has undergone a liver transplant can live a normal life in terms of activity, health, food and vigor with some basic precautions. Some anti rejection medicines and cyclic follow up with liver transplant team or hospital will continue to live healthy life.  Comparable to any other international liver transplant centre Liver transplant in India attracts patients from around the world for its successful and safe treatment.

Cadaveric Liver Transplantation in India

Human body is made up of many vital organs and good health is defined as the level of metabolic or functional efficiency of a living organism and its ability of to adapt and self-manage when facing physical, social or mental challenges. But for some reasons one of the prominent body organ of human body the liver can become gradually damaged as a result of infection, illness or alcohol.

This damage causes the liver to reach to a critical stage called as the scarred Liver failure which can also led very rapidly as a result of inflammation and death of liver tissue, Cadaveric liver transplantation is end stage option for this kind of liver patients.

Cadaveric liver transplantation is the replacement of a diseased liver with some or all of a healthy liver from another person. Cadaveric Liver transplantation can be successfully done with living persons liver or deceased person’s liver as declared brain dead but its organs are working. For successful cadaveric liver transplantation some tests, anti rejection medicines, finding a match, complication, and the follow-up with liver transplantation doctor’s team is required.

 The Cadaveric liver transplantation is a complex procedure and the Patient and family members are in a dilemma with many Pros and Cos. But both the donor and recipient grow recovery within few weeks under the doctor’s observation with medicines and precautions. 

Hepatitis B: Causes, Prevention and Cure

Hepatitis B refers to inflammation of the liver caused by the hepatitis virus. Those who are infected with hepatitis B in childhood usually have high chances of carrying it for lifetime. Most of the time, it eventually develops into cirrhosis, liver failure and liver cancer.

Most of the patients do not show up any symptoms until the disease reaches at an advanced stage. Patients infected with hepatitis B usually have acute hepatitis with flu-like symptoms and jaundice followed by gradual progress into severe cirrhosis and liver failure.Stats reveal that more than 350 million individuals have chronic hepatitis B around world, out of approx one million die each year.

a)    Hepatitis B is majorly spread by unsafe sex. You should use latex condoms to save yourself as well as others from getting infected.

b)    Everyone should get vaccinated for hepatitis B

c)    One must not share anything having blood on it such  as a toothbrush or razor

d)    A person having Hepatitis B must not donate his blood, body organs, other tissues or sperm

e)    You should also keep your sore and cuts covered

f)    New born babies also get infected with HBV during birth, but it can be prevented,

g)    All babies should be given first dose of hepatitis B vaccine within 12 hours of birth. One should also ask doctor about the next dosage and provides it as per the schedule. Ask your doctor when your baby should get the next dose of the Hepatitis B vaccine.

h)    If the mother is having hepatitis B, it is essential to get a blood test of the child after vaccination to ensure that he or she is protected

i)     It is essential to know that Hepatitis B is not contagious diseases and it dies not spread by sneezing or coughing, kissing or hugging, breastfeeding, food or water, sharing eating utensils or working together in a same office etc.

In India, more than 40 million people have chronic hepatitis B. All infected people may not show up symptoms or may not even be aware of that they are actually carrying the virus.However, only 10-20% off patients will develop chronic hepatitis and cirrhosis, the remaining 80-90% will remain 'carriers'.

One must visit a liver specialist regularly for Hepatitis B treatment in India and get their liver profile at examined regular intervals or as advised. One must consult hepatologist before taking any new medicines. Those having liver damage from Hepatitis B; they should get tested for Hepatitis A and C and vaccinated against it.

Significance and Effectiveness of Liver Transplantation for Liver Cancer

Liver transplant for cancer is an effective treatment for liver cancer patients whose tumours cannot be removed surgically. In this surgical procedure, the cancerous liver is removed and replaced with a healthy liver by the means of transplantation.

Doctors usually follow a standard set of rules to determine if a person is an ideal candidate for liver transplantation. There are limitations on the size of tumour to be treated through transplantation. If there is single tumor, it should be less than 5 cm. If there are multiple tumours, there can be maximum three and largest must be 3 cm or less. Besides, above all, liver cancer must not have spread outside the liver for effective transplantation.

With advancement in surgical procedures, there has been increase in the liver transplantation success rate in the recent years. Doctors have also become more experienced in identifying patients with liver cancer who would likely to live better life after liver transplant for cancer.

There are always risks associated with any organ transplantation surgery. 

Such risks may include:

·        a) Transplanted organ rejected by the body’s immune system

·         b)  Infection

·        c)  Liver cancer returning

·        d)  Reactions to the medications needed after the transplantation

·         e) Increased bleeding, difficulty clotting

·         f)  Reaction to aesthetic during surgery

Patient who undergo liver transplant have to take anti-rejection medications to refrain your body from rejecting new healthier liver. However, many times, these medications can also make you susceptible to severe infections. With advanced techniques and surgical procedures, now it is possible to liver healthier life after successful liver transplantation.