Educating yourself on the symptoms of liver damage can be very beneficial. Look out for the symptoms we mention in this article. Visit a doctor as soon as you become suspicious that what you or a friend may be experiencing is liver disease. Liver disease can lead to cirrhosis and liver disease and ultimately death in the worst cases. However, with adequate diagnosis and treatment in the earlier stages of liver disease, many lives can be saved.
Classic Liver Disease Symptoms
The most commonly seen signs of liver disease are:
- Vomiting
- Nausea
- Abdominal pain in the upper quadrant (right)
- Jaundice (yellow discoloration of skin from raised concentrations of bilirubin in bloodstream)
- Weight loss
- Weakness
- Fatigue
Since there are a wide variety of liver conditions, specific symptoms usually appear for a particular illness. However, in the later stages, most liver illnesses culminate in the same way – as liver failure and liver cirrhosis.
Symptoms Specific to Particular Liver Conditions
Certain signs of liver disease only occur when a particular symptom is experienced. Patients with gall stones will experience abdominal pain in the upper right quadrant, vomiting post consumption of fatty meals. If their gallbladder gets infected, chances of a fever occurring also exist. On the other hand, Gilbert’s disease causes no symptoms in the patient.
In the case of liver cirrhosis, symptoms will show progressively as the liver’s condition gets worse. Some of the symptoms are directly due to the liver’s inability to metabolize body waste products. Other symptoms reflect the liver’s failure to manufacture proteins needed for body function. This could affect secondary characteristics of sex, brain function, and even blood clotting mechanisms.
Symptoms of liver cirrhosis are muscle wasting, ascites, lethargy and confusion, impotence, lack of sex drive, and gynecomastia. Itchiness may also be experienced due to bile salts being deposited on the skin. The patient will get bruised easily due to a fall in the level of clotting factors in bloodstream.
Furthermore, the development of extra pressure in the cirrhotic liver affects blood flow in the liver. Extra portal vein pressure causes the blood to flow slowly in the liver. This results in swelling of the blood vessels.
When You Should Seek Medical Aid
Liver disease often creeps onto its victims very gradually. Often, symptoms of liver damage are so quiet that patients neglect visiting a medical professional for diagnosis until it’s too late. Do not ignore unusual weight loss, weakness, or fatigue. Yellow skin and jaundice are signs of something abnormal taking place. Never ignore such symptoms. Consult with a medical professional for evaluation immediately. Abdominal pain, vomiting, and persistent fever also deem urgent medical attention necessary.