Cirrhosis Research Paper

1250 Words5 Pages
The liver is the largest solid organ in the body and performs many important functions, including being the site of synthesis and destruction of important blood clotting factors, detoxification of harmful substances in the bloodstream like alcohol and drugs, and breaking down or storing many important compounds for the body like glucose, fat, and proteins. The liver is also important for the process of digestion. It produces bile which is critical for the digestion and absorption of fats and fat-soluble vitamins. Cirrhosis is a disease of the liver in which healthy liver tissue is replaced fibrous material, scar tissue. The scar tissue blocks the flow of blood through the liver and eventually prevents the liver from functioning properly. Without proper function of the liver, nutrients, drugs, hormones and toxins cannot not be processed and filtered in an efficient manner. Another consequence, is the slowed production of proteins and other…show more content…
The invasive means of diagnosis involves what is called a liver biopsy. This method has been called the “gold standard” for diagnosis. A liver biopsy will give information to the doctor about the degree of inflammation and fibrosis in the liver, and will thus help determine the urgency and level of treatment necessary. Liver biopsies are especially important because clinical laboratory tests can identify patients with cirrhosis who also have more advanced fibrosis, but may miss those with lesser degrees of fibrosis. And studies have shown that the extent of fibrosis is a good predictor of how well a patient will respond to treatment. There is also the scenario of a person having for example, persistently normal AST and ALT levels, but having progressive liver disease over time. This occurs in 14 to 24% of HCV patients. In this case, a liver biopsy every 4 to 5 years may be the only way to measure this change in patients (Strader et al.,
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