Description

Alcoholic hepatitis is inflammation, called inflammation of the liver caused by the consumption of alcohol. Drinking alcohol destroys the liver cells.

Alcoholic hepatitis occurs more frequently in people who drink heavily over many years. But the link between drinking and alcoholic hepatitis is not simple. Not all heavy drinkers get alcoholic hepatitis. And some people who drink a lot less than getting the disease.

If you are diagnosed with alcoholic hepatitis, you must stop drinking alcohol. The people who keep consumption of alcohol has a high risk of serious liver damage and death.

Symptoms

The most common sign of alcoholic hepatitis is a yellowing of the skin and the whites of the eyes, called jaundice. The yellow color of the skin may be more difficult to see in the Black and brown people.

Other symptoms include:

  • Loss of appetite.
  • Nausea and vomiting.
  • From the belly of the tenderness.
  • Fever, often low-grade.
  • The feeling of tiredness and weakness.

People with alcoholic hepatitis tend to be malnourished. Drinking large amounts of alcohol kept people out of hunger. And heavy drinkers get most of their calories from alcohol.

Other symptoms that may occur with severe alcoholic hepatitis include:

  • Accumulation of fluid in the abdomen, called ascites.
  • He is confused and acting strangely due to an accumulation of toxins. The healthy liver breaks these toxins down and dispose of them.
  • Liver and kidney failure.

When to see a doctor

Alcoholic hepatitis is a severe, often fatal disease.

Consult a health professional if:

  • You have symptoms of alcoholic hepatitis.
  • You can't control your alcohol consumption.
  • Want to help reduce your consumption of alcohol.

Causes

Alcoholic hepatitis is caused by a damage in the liver by the consumption of alcohol. Just how alcohol damages the liver and why it does so only in some heavy drinkers is not clear.

These factors are known to play a role in alcoholic hepatitis:

  • The shape of the body to break down alcohol makes the highly toxic chemicals.
  • These chemicals cause swelling, called inflammation, which destroys the cells of the liver.
  • With time, the scars will replace the healthy liver tissue. This prevents the liver from working well.
  • This scarring, called cirrhosis, it can't be fixed. It is the final stage of alcoholic liver disease.

Other factors that can be involved with alcoholic hepatitis include:

  • Other types of liver disease. Alcoholic hepatitis can cause chronic liver disease worse. For example, if you have hepatitis C and the drink, even a little, you are more likely to get the scarring of the liver that if you don't drink.
  • The lack of nutrition. Many of the people who drink in excess are not receiving enough nutrients because they eat badly. And the alcohol prevents the body from the use of nutrients as it should. The lack of nutrients can damage the cells of the liver.

Risk factors

The main risk factor for alcoholic hepatitis is the amount of alcohol you drink. It is not known the amount of alcohol that cause alcoholic hepatitis.

Most people with this condition have had at least seven drinks per day, for 20 years or more. This may mean 7 glasses of wine a day, 7 beers, or 7 shots of spirits.

However, alcoholic hepatitis can happen to people who consume less and have other risk factors, including:

  • Sex. Women seem to have a higher risk of developing alcoholic hepatitis. That might be because of how alcohol is broken down in the body of the woman.
  • Obesity. Heavy drinkers who are overweight may be more likely to get alcoholic hepatitis. And they may be more likely to go to get the scarring of the liver.
  • Genes. The studies suggest that the genes might be involved in alcohol-induced liver disease.
  • Race and ethnicity. Black and Hispanic people could be at greater risk of alcoholic hepatitis.
  • Excessive consumption of alcohol. Having five or more drinks in about two hours for men and four or more for women could increase the risk of alcoholic hepatitis.

Complications

The complications of alcoholic hepatitis are caused by scar tissue in the liver. The scar tissue can reduce the flow of blood through the liver. You can increase the pressure on a major blood vessel called the portal vein and cause a build-up of toxins.

Complications include:

  • The enlarged veins are called varicose veins.The blood cannot flow freely through the portal vein can backup in other blood vessels in the stomach and the tube through which food passes from the throat to the stomach, called the esophagus. These blood vessels have thin walls. It is likely to bleed if it is filled with blood. Heavy bleeding in the upper part of the stomach or the esophagus is a potentially life-threatening and requires immediate medical attention.
  • Ascites (ah-SITE-ees). The fluid that accumulates in the abdomen may become infected and need treatment with antibiotics. The ascites is not life-threatening. But more often means advanced alcoholic hepatitis or cirrhosis.
  • Confusion, drowsiness and slurred speech, called hepatic encephalopathy. A damaged liver has problems in the elimination of toxins from the body. The buildup of toxins that can damage the brain. Severe hepatic encephalopathy can cause a coma.
  • The renal failure. A damaged liver, it can affect the flow of blood to the kidneys. This can damage the kidneys.
  • Cirrhosis. This scarring of the liver that can lead to liver failure.

The enlarged veins are called varicose veins. The blood cannot flow freely through the portal vein can backup in other blood vessels in the stomach and the tube through which food passes from the throat to the stomach, called the esophagus.

These blood vessels have thin walls. It is likely to bleed if it is filled with blood. Heavy bleeding in the upper part of the stomach or the esophagus is a potentially life-threatening and requires immediate medical attention.

Prevention

You can reduce your risk of alcoholic hepatitis if:

  • Drink alcohol only in moderation, if at all. For healthy adults, moderate drinking means up to one drink per day for women and up to two drinks per day for men. The only sure way to prevent alcoholic hepatitis is to avoid all alcoholic beverages.
  • Protect yourself from hepatitis C. Hepatitis C is a liver disease caused by a virus. Without treatment, it can lead to cirrhosis. If you have hepatitis C and alcohol drinking, which is much more likely to get cirrhosis that if you don't drink.
  • Verify before mixing drugs and alcohol.Ask your health care provider if it is safe to drink alcohol when you take your prescription drugs. Read the warning labels on the medicines you can obtain without a prescription. Do not drink alcohol when taking medications that warn against the consumption of alcohol while taking. This includes pain relievers such as acetaminophen (Tylenol, others).

Verify before mixing drugs and alcohol. Ask your health care provider if it is safe to drink alcohol when you take your prescription drugs. Read the warning labels on the medicines you can obtain without a prescription.

Do not drink alcohol when taking medications that warn against the consumption of alcohol while taking. This includes pain relievers such as acetaminophen (Tylenol, others).

Diagnosis

Your healthcare provider will perform a physical examination and ask about your alcohol use, now and in the past. Be honest about your alcohol consumption. Your health care professional may ask to speak with family members about their consumption of alcohol.

The diagnosis of the liver disease could involve these tests:

  • The liver function tests.
  • Blood tests.
  • Ultrasound, computed tomography or magnetic resonance imaging of the liver.
  • A liver biopsy, if other imaging tests, and does not give a clear diagnosis, or if you are at risk of other causes of hepatitis.

Treatment

The treatment for alcoholic hepatitis is to stop drinking, as well as therapies to alleviate the symptoms of liver damage.

Stop drinking

If you have been diagnosed with alcoholic hepatitis, you need to stop drinking alcohol and never drink alcohol again. It is the only way in which they can reverse the damage in the liver, impede or prevent the disease from getting worse. People who do not stop drinking, it is likely that the health problems that threaten it.

If you are dependent on alcohol and want to stop drinking, your healthcare provider may suggest a treatment that suits your needs. It can be harmful to stop drinking once. To discuss a plan with your health care professional.

Treatment may include:

  • Drugs.
  • Counseling.
  • Alcoholics Anonymous or other support groups.
  • Outpatient or in the treatment program.

The treatment for malnutrition

Your health care professional may suggest a special diet to correct poor nutrition. You may be referred to an expert in the diet to control the disease, is called to a nutritionist. A dietitian can suggest ways of eating better and making of the vitamins and nutrients you lack.

If you have difficulty eating, your health care professional may be able to suggest a feeding tube. A tube is passed down the throat or on the side and in the stomach. A special nutrient-rich liquid diet is passed through the tube.

Medications to reduce the swelling, of the liver, called inflammation

These can help severe alcoholic hepatitis:

  • Corticosteroids. These medications can help some people with severe alcoholic hepatitis to live longer. However, steroids have serious side effects. Will not be used if you have kidney failure, bleeding in the stomach or an infection.
  • Pentoxifylline. Your healthcare provider might suggest this medicine if you can't take steroids. How well pentoxifylline works for alcoholic hepatitis is unclear. The results of the study are different.
  • Other treatment. N-acetylcysteine may help some people with alcoholic hepatitis. More studies are needed.

Liver transplant

For many people with severe alcoholic hepatitis, the risk of death is high without a liver transplant.

In the past, people with alcoholic hepatitis have not been given new livers. This is due to the risk that they are going to continue drinking after transplantation. But recent studies suggest that well-chosen people with severe alcoholic hepatitis have survival rates after transplantation, similar to people with other types of liver disease who receive a liver transplant.

For the transplant to be an option, you will need to:

  • To find a program that works with people who have alcoholic hepatitis.
  • Follow the rules of the program. This includes making a promise not to drink alcohol for the rest of your life.

Preparing for your appointment

You may be referred to a specialist in digestive diseases, called a gastroenterologist.

What you can do

When you make the appointment, ask if there is something that you need to do before certain tests, such as not eating or drinking.

Make a list of:

  • Its symptoms, including those that do not appear to be linked to the reason why you made the appointment, and when they began.
  • All the drugs, vitamins, and supplements you are taking, including dosage.
  • Key medical information, including other conditions.
  • Key personal information, including any recent changes or stressors in your life. Keep track of the amount of alcohol you drink for a few days so that your health care professional.
  • Questions to ask your health care professional.

Have a relative or friend to go with you, if possible, to help you remember the information they give you.

Questions to ask your doctor

  • What is the most likely cause of my symptoms? There are other possible causes?
  • Do I have liver disease?
  • There are scars from my liver?
  • What tests do I need? How do I prepare for them?
  • Is my condition likely to disappear or to be of long duration?
  • What treatment do you suggest?
  • I have other health problems. How can I best manage these conditions?

Be sure to ask all the questions you have about your condition.

What to expect from your doctor

Your healthcare provider is likely to ask questions such as:

  • How bad are the symptoms? They do not come and go, or do you have all the time?
  • Is there something to improve their symptoms or worse?
  • Has had hepatitis or yellowing of the skin or whites of the eyes?
  • Do you use illicit drugs?
  • Have you ever felt you should reduce the consumption of alcohol or felt guilty or bad about his drinking?
  • Are your family members or friends concerned about your drinking? You have been arrested or had other problems because of their alcohol consumption?
  • Angry or upset when someone speaks to you about your alcohol consumption?
  • Do you feel guilty about your drinking?
  • What to drink in the morning?
Symptoms and treatment of Alcoholic hepatitis