liver disease

Examples of liver disease in the following topics:

• Absorption of Alcohol

  • Women, certain ethnicities and persons with liver disease may process alcohol more slowly.
  • Alcoholic liver disease is a major public health problem.
  • In cases of severe liver disease, the only treatment option may be a liver transplant in alcohol-abstinent patients.
  • Moderate alcohol consumption also increases the risk of liver disease.
  • Consumption of alcohol is unrelated to gallbladder disease.

• Skin Color as a Diagnostic Clue

  • Changes in skin color can be diagnostic of trauma (bruising), environmental, or physiological changes (jaundice, melasma, and liver spots).
  • It is often seen in liver disease such as hepatitis or liver cancer.
  • The incidence of melasma also increases in patients with thyroid disease.
  • The spots derive their name from the fact that they were once incorrectly believed to be caused by liver problems, but they are physiologically unrelated to the liver, save for a similar color.
  • Liver spots are very common in this age group, particularly in those who spend a lot of time in the sun.

• Hepatitis

  • Bacterial diseases can also cause liver inflammation, such as tuberculosis and tick-borne diseases.
  • Non-infectious causes of hepatitis include alcohol, autoimmune conditions, drugs, circulatory insufficiency, metabolic diseases, pregnancy, and toxins.
  • Alcoholic hepatitis can vary from mild with only liver test elevation to severe liver inflammation with development of jaundice and liver failure.
  • Alcoholic hepatitis can occur in patients with chronic alcoholic liver disease and alcoholic cirrhosis.
  • Similarly, hepatitis caused by a bacterial disease will typically resolve once the bacterial illness is treated with antibiotics.

• Aflatoxin Poisoning

  • Upon ingestion or exposure to aflatoxin, it is common to see injury to the liver.
  • Aflatoxicosis is a primarily hepatic disease, as the liver is the target organ for this toxin in mammals.
  • Although the liver demonstrates the ability to metabolize the ingested aflatoxins, the intermediate formed is a reactive epoxide or a less harmful hydroxylated form referred to as M1.
  • These metabolites are harmful to the liver and have been implicated in liver cancer development.
  • Acute aflatoxicosis is characterized by symptoms such as hemorrhaging; acute liver damage and issues with digestion; and absorption and metabolism of nutrients.

• Polycystic Kidney Disease

  • Polycystic kidney disease (PKD) is a cystic genetic disorder of the kidneys.
  • There are two types of PKD: autosomal dominant polycystic kidney disease (ADPKD), and the less-common autosomal recessive polycystic kidney disease (ARPKD).
  • The disease can also damage the liver, pancreas, and, in some rare cases, the heart and brain.
  • Polycystic kidney disease is one of the most common life-threatening genetic diseases, affecting an estimated 12.5 million people worldwide.
  • Autosomal dominant polycystic kidney disease (ADPKD) is the most common of all the hereditary cystic kidney diseases, with an incidence of 1:1,000 to 2:1,000 live births.

• Hydatid Disease

  • Hydatid disease, also referred to as cystic echinococcosis, is characterized by the slow growth of large cysts within various organs.
  • Cysts are typically found in the liver and in the thorax or abdominal cavity.
  • Echinococcus granulosus are capable of infecting humans, resulting in hydatid disease, and cause slowly enlarging cysts that develop in vital organs such as the liver or lungs, also referred to as cystic echinococcosis.
  • The exiting of the intestinal wall results in circulation of oncospheres that will target various organs, including the liver and lungs.
  • Hydatid disease is characterized by the growth of these cysts into the adult stage for the tapeworm.

• Insulin Secretion and Regulation of Glucagon

  • Glucose is stored in the liver in the form of the polysaccharide glycogen, which is a glucan.
  • Liver cells have glucagon receptors and when glucagon binds to the liver cells they convert glycogen into individual glucose molecules and release them into the bloodstream—this process is known as glycogenolysis.
  • As these stores become depleted, glucagon then encourages the liver and kidney to synthesize additional glucose by gluconeogenesis.
  • Glucagon also turns off glycolysis in the liver, causing glycolytic intermediates to be shuttled to gluconeogenesis that can induce lipolysis to produce glucose from fat.
  • It's main role is to promote the conversion of circulating glucose into glycogen via glycogenesis in the liver and muscle cells.

• Galactosemia and Glycogen Storage Disease

  • Galactosemia and GSD are two diseases that are caused by improper carbohydrate metabolism.
  • In individuals with galactosemia, the enzymes needed for further metabolism of galactose are severely diminished or missing entirely, leading to toxic levels of galactose 1-phosphate in various tissues as in the case of classic galactosemia, resulting in hepatomegaly (an enlarged liver), cirrhosis, renal failure, cataracts, brain damage, and ovarian failure.
  • Glycogen storage disease (GSD, also glycogenosis and dextrinosis) is the result of defects in the processing of glycogen synthesis or breakdown within muscles, liver, and other cell types.
  • Overall, according to a study in British Columbia, approximately 2.3 children per 100,000 births (one in 43,000) have some form of glycogen storage disease.
  • There are 11 distinct diseases that are commonly considered to be glycogen storage diseases (some previously thought to be distinct have been reclassified).

• The Liver

  • The liver makes bile, which is essential for the digestion of fats.
  • The liver normally weighs between 1.3—3.0 kilograms and is a soft, pinkish-brown organ.
  • The liver is supplied by two main blood vessels on its right lobe: the hepatic artery and the portal vein.
  • The bile produced in the liver is essential for the digestion of fats.
  • Bile is formed in the liver, and it is stored in the gallbladder or released directly into the small intestine.

• Anatomy of the Liver

  • The liver is located in the abdomen and has four lobes.
  • The liver lies to the right of the stomach and overlies the gall bladder.
  • The lobes are further divided into lobules, the functional units of the liver.
  • The spatial relationship between the liver, stomach, gall bladder, and pancreas.
  • The liver is seen above the stomach, gall bladder, and pancreas.