Liver Disease: Expert discusses risks and symptoms
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Cirrhosis describes the scarring of the liver, which is caused by liver damage. This scarring can prevent your liver from working properly. Cirrhosis might be difficult to spot during the early stages, however, there are some warning signs.
Dr Michael Mosley has shared one sign of liver disease that can be found in handwriting in his Daily Mail article.
He penned: “Because so many of us treat our livers badly, liver disease is now a leading cause of premature death in the UK.
“But it is a largely silent killer because most people don’t know they’re at risk until [it’s] too late.”
One later symptom could be handwriting that is spidery, difficult and small.
The doctor explained that this could be due to the toxins reaching your brain.
The good news is there are some early signs of this condition, according to the British Liver Trust.
These signs include:
- Feeling unwell and tired
- Loss of appetite
- Loss of weight and muscle wasting
- Nausea and vomiting
- Pain in the liver area
- Blotchy red palms
- Disturbed sleeping
- Spider-like small blood capillaries on the skin.
The liver charity advised talking to your GP if you experience any of these symptoms.
To confirm whether you have this condition, your doctor might conduct blood tests, scans or a liver biopsy.
Currently, there’s no cure for this condition, but there are some options available when it comes to managing the symptoms and slowing the progression.
One of them could be treating the initial problem that caused cirrhosis in the first place.
For example, this could be using anti-viral medicines to treat hepatitis C, as having this virus for a long time can lead to cirrhosis.
In the case your liver has sustained severe damage, a liver transplant might be the only choice, the NHS states.
Luckily, there are also some ways that could prevent cirrhosis.
Maintaining a healthy weight and limiting your alcohol intake could be helpful.
The NHS advises drinking only within the recommended limits.
The health body states this limit is marked by 14 units of alcohol a week.
Once you’ve developed cirrhosis, you should stop drinking immediately, the health service warns.
Another way how to prevent the liver condition is protecting yourself from hepatitis.
The virus is commonly spread by having unprotected sex with an infected person or coming to close contact with infected blood, the NHS explains.
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