Early signs of liver disease

Enyeribe Ejiogu

In human beings, the liver is a large organ that has a highly specialised tissue. It is the largest organ in the body. The bulk of the liver sits on the right side of the abdomen but a little part of it crosses over, somewhat, to the left side, sitting as it were on a part of the stomach (see image on this page).

The colour of the liver is reddish-brown and the surface feels so smooth to touch. It is very unique in look and a highly desired meat often recommended by doctors for pregnant women. It is also loved by most other people.

The liver has two large sections, called the right and the left lobes. It is one of the most important organs of the body and extremely vital for the sustenance of life and proper functioning of others organs of the body. The liver regulates the levels of chemicals in the blood and excretes a product called bile, which helps to carry away the waste products of metabolism from the liver. In some sense, you could say that the liver daily does internal ‘environmental sanitation’ in the body. The blood leaving the stomach and intestines passes through the liver for removal of dangerous chemicals before being pumped to the heart.

Essentially, the liver performs seven primary functions. These are: production and excretion of bile; excretion of bilirubin, cholesterol, hormones, drugs as well as drug residues; metabolism of fats, proteins and carbohydrates; activation of enzymes; storage of glycogen, vitamins, and minerals, and synthesis of plasma proteins, such as albumin and clotting factors.

The liver can get ‘sick’ too

Like every other organ of the body the liver can get sick, that is, it can become diseased. Unlike some other parts of the body that give clear signs of disease, the liver may not easily show that it is diseased. There are more than 100 different diseases that can affect the liver. They have different causes, including the flowing: infection, having too alcohol over a prolonged period of time, exposure to medications, illegal drugs, or chemical toxins; obesity and cancer.

Despite the fact that there are different diseases and different causes of liver problems, many liver conditions damage the liver in similar ways. Because of this, they can look similar and cause similar symptoms.

Acute vs. chronic diseases

Sometimes liver damage or even liver failure and related symptoms will be acute, or come on quickly. This can happen if you take too much acetaminophen (a drug that relieves headache and pain) or other medicines. Herbal supplements, viruses, and autoimmune conditions also can cause this. But most of the time, liver diseases and liver failure are chronic. This means they happen gradually as the liver is damaged slowly over time. In this case, symptoms can come on more gradually too.

Early symptoms of liver disease

Because of the nature of the liver, a person may not notice early symptoms of disease. If you do, it might be hard to know what’s causing them. That’s because early signs of liver trouble are vague, like belly pain, not feeling hungry, tiredness or lack of energy and diarrhea. You may just feel generally sick or unwell and not know why.

Jaundice:

As the liver gets more damaged, you may notice clearer signs of a problem. Your skin may look yellow along with the whites of your eyes. Doctors call this jaundice. This happens when too much of a yellow substance from the red blood cells called bilirubin builds up. Normally,the liver would clear the bilirubin out. But a damaged liver can’t keep up, so levels rise.

Itchy skin

If you have lasting liver problems, you may feel itchy. This happens even though you don’t have a rash or anything on your skin. The itchiness can make it hard to do things like sleep. It keeps up even if you scratch. If you have this, ask your doctor if there’s medicine that can help.

Swollen belly (Ascites)

If your liver is scarred, it can block blood flow to your liver and raise the pressure in blood vessels around it. This makes fluid to seep out and collect in the belly. There may be a little fluid and swelling or a lot. Your belly may get very large and your belly button might push out. Sometimes ascites gets infected and needs antibiotics. If there’s a lot of extra fluid with nowhere to go, you may need to have it drained with a tube.

Swollen legs or ankles

In some people with ascites, legs and ankles also swell as fluid builds up. It might help to eat less salt or take medicine that makes you pee more.

Pale feaces and dark urine

Your liver is the reason that healthy feaces looks brown. The brown colour comes from bile salts made by your liver, which are passed with feaces resulting from undigested food. If the liver doesn’t make bile normally or if the flow from the liver is blocked, the feaces will look pale like the colour of clay. Pale feaces often happens along with jaundice. The extra bilirubin that causes jaundice can also make the urine unusually dark.

Fatigue and confusion

Many people with liver disease suffer from lingering fatigue. This might happen because of toxins building up since the liver isn’t clearing them like it should. The build-up of toxins in the body and bloodstream can also affect brain function. The person might get confused or find it hard to concentrate. The individual might forget things or notice other changes as liver disease affects the brain.

Nausea and vomiting

The stomach might get upset early on if you have liver disease. As the disease and damage to the liver go on, raised toxin levels can make this worse. Lingering nausea or vomiting often is a sign of liver problems. If liver is failing, it is very likely that the person may also have blood in the vomitus or feaces.

Bruising easily or bleeding

When the liver begins to fail, one clear indication is that individual may bruises more easily. If the person has a cut or nosebleed, it may not stop like it should. While people with advanced liver disease are prone to bleeding, they also are more likely to get blood clots.

Last word

It’s possible for someone to have liver disease without knowing it. Several people with liver problems don’t seem sick. As damage to the liver gets worse, symptoms will start. If the damage has gone too far, there might not be any way to fix it. But knowing what to look for could help to catch liver problems early. That way you’ll have a chance to stop more damage and let your liver heal before it’s too late.