Recently Answered Questions
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There is a six-month waitlist for a liver transplant. What are our options?
Query: Hello doctor, My brother, 46, has ALD cirrhosis. He was admitted to a hospital. Day-6 now. And is undergoing withdrawal and other treatment. MELD score is 22-24; ammonia 40 (down from 70). Low platelets, lot of bruises from falling pre-admittance. Signs of advanced hepatic encephalopathy. Treatment ... Read Full »
Answer: Hi, Welcome to icliniq.com. First of all, you need to understand that alternative therapies do not work in acute severe states. You can consider them later once he recovers. At this point of time, apart from medical management that is already being done, you can discuss with your doctor for liver ... Read Full »
I have an enlarged liver with fatty changes. Is it serious?
Query: Hello doctor, I am 51 years old and have been diagnosed with an enlarged liver showing fatty changes grade-3. Is it life threatening? Read Full »
Dr. Mahmoud Ahmed Abdelrahman Abouibrahim
Answer: Hello, Welcome to icliniq.com. Fatty liver change is a progressive condition that leads to liver cirrhosis after years if not managed properly. Risk factors include obesity, high cholesterol, and alcohol. Please provide me with your alcohol intake history and your lipid profile and liver function ... Read Full »
How to differentiate cirrhotic and non-cirrhotic portal hypertension?
Query: Hi doctor, I did a CT scan for my back area due to frequent urination. It showed borderline portal hypertension with a borderline enlarged spleen and mildly enlarged portal vein. I used to be an alcoholic for about 15 years, but now I have not taken alcohol for the past six years. I am planning to s... Read Full »
Answer: Hello, Welcome to icliniq.com. Thanks for writing in, and I understand your concern. It is confirmed that you have portal hypertension, meaning increased pressure in the portal vein. The portal vein is one of the blood supplies to the liver. Portal hypertension develops with cirrhosis or liver dis... Read Full »
Is light beer harmful for my preexisting liver disease?
Query: Hello doctor, I was diagnosed with non-alcoholic fatty liver disease last year. My liver enzymes are very high. I used to drink champagne, wine, and other hard liquor, a few times a week. But now, I switched to light beer. Is it bad for my liver? Read Full »
Answer: Hello, Welcome to icliniq.com. Excessive alcohol, that is, more than 12 g a day, is certainly dangerous and should be strictly avoided. Regarding mild to moderate consumption, data is inadequate at this moment. But, recommendations are to strictly avoid all alcohol consumption because it can damage... Read Full »
How to improve the kidney function of a liver cirrhosis patient?
Query: Hi doctor, My father is suffering from liver cirrhosis as reported by the doctors. His kidneys are also damaged and due to constipation brain is also getting affected. Urine is not passing. He is unconscious. We tried dialysis twice but there are no signs of improvement as per the doctors here. I j... Read Full »
Answer: Hello, Welcome to icliniq.com. As described in the case summary, the patient's condition is critical (attachment removed to protect patient identity). Decompensated cirrhosis is an irreversible disease, and it seems the patient has all the complications of the disease. The optimum medical manageme... Read Full »
Does dark-colored urine occur due to a side effect of asthma medication?
Query: Hi doctor, I am a 29 years old female, who weighs 138 lbs and I am 5.4 feet tall. Since a year, I have been suffering from very strange symptoms like dark yellow urine (very deep yellow and sometimes turbid and cloudy in appearance), yellowish eyes, very sour taste in the mouth throughout the day, i... Read Full »
Dr. Goswami Parth Rajendragiri
Answer: Hi, Welcome to icliniq.com. I have carefully gone through your reports (attachment removed to protect patient identity), your case seems to be complicated. In the case of yellow urine and yellow sclera with weakness, first, we should rule out hemolytic anemia and jaundice. Jaundice can be from h... Read Full »
AST/ALT more than 1. Can this mean liver disease or cirrhosis?
Query: Hello doctor,Three years ago I was diagnosed with non-alcoholic fatty liver and at that time my liver enzymes were 3 to 4 times of the upper ranges. I then lost weight and with time my enzymes got normalized. However, in last test, I have noticed a pattern where AST is greater than ALT, though they ... Read Full »
Answer: Hi, Welcome to icliniq.com. No, the concept of AST (aspartate aminotransferase): ALT (alanine transaminase) is not valid when the enzymes are in normal range. However, low platelet count can be an early sign of liver cirrhosis. It is not very uncommon to get liver cirrhosis in cases of NAFLD (non-... Read Full »
My husband gets leg muscle cramps. Please advise.
Query: Hello doctor, My husband has an advanced stage liver cirrhosis and gets muscle cramps in legs from time to time, at night time or when he wakes up in the morning. Other patients with similar issues recommend drinking tonic water that contains Quinine or taking Calcium Magnesium supplements. He has v... Read Full »
Answer: Hi, Welcome to icliniq.com. Cramps happen in cirrhotics due to nutritional insufficiency, mineral deficiency, mainly calcium and magnesium. My suggestions would be: Calcerol sachet (Vitamin D3 60000) once weekly for six weeks. Tablet Magnical (Magnesium with Calcium) twice daily for a month to ... Read Full »
Why is my vitamin B12 level over 1000?
Query: Hi doctor,I am 21 years old. I am taking tablet Cymbalta 60 mg and tablet Citalopram 10 mg daily for depression and anxiety. Recently, I got a blood test for vitamin B12 and the results turned out to be pretty high at 1344 pg/mL. I am aware that the normal range of vitamin B12 is 200 to 900 pg/mL. M... Read Full »
Answer: Hello, Welcome to icliniq.com. Based on your query my opinion is as follows. Increased vitamin B12 is worrisome. It is a water-soluble vitamin. It never increase unless there is some amount of hepatic damage or certain cancers. I strongly urge you to get a liver function test. Both Cymbalta (Du... Read Full »
My brother has been facing issues with excretion. Kindly help.
Query: Hello doctor, My brother is 38 years old and he is obese. His weight is more than 330 lbs. He has been found with liver cirrhosis few years back and he has taken medicine for that and all went normally. Later, he found with balanitis but after medicine he was normal. At present, he used to drink but... Read Full »
Answer: Hi, Welcome to icliniq.com. I could find three issues with your brother. They are obesity, cirrhosis, and fissure. All these are related. He needs to lose weight. He has to be motivated with regular physical activity, modified diet and restrict fluid to 2 liters a day. Regarding cirrhosis, he need... Read Full »