Liver Diseases

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Liver Diseases

Summary

Your liver is the largest organ inside your body. It helps your body digest food, store energy, and remove poisons.

There are many kinds of liver diseases:

Diseases caused by viruses, such as hepatitis A, hepatitis B, and hepatitis C
Diseases caused by drugs, poisons, or too much alcohol. Examples include fatty liver disease and cirrhosis.
Liver cancer
Inherited diseases, such as hemochromatosis and Wilson disease

Symptoms of liver disease can vary, but they often include swelling of the abdomen and legs, bruising easily, changes in the color of your stool and urine, and jaundice, or yellowing of the skin and eyes. Sometimes there are no symptoms. Tests such as imaging tests and liver function tests can check for liver damage and help to diagnose liver diseases.

Start Here

Liver Disease (Mayo Foundation for Medical Education and Research) Also in Spanish
Progression of Liver Disease (American Liver Foundation)

Diagnosis and Tests

Abdominal and Pelvic CT (American College of Radiology, Radiological Society of North America) Also in Spanish
Abdominal Ultrasound (American College of Radiology, Radiological Society of North America) Also in Spanish
ERCP (Endoscopic Retrograde Cholangiopancreatography) (National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases) Also in Spanish
Liver Biopsy (National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases) Also in Spanish
Liver Function Tests: MedlinePlus Health Topic (National Library of Medicine) Also in Spanish
Magnetic Resonance Cholangiopancreatography (MRCP) (American College of Radiology, Radiological Society of North America) Also in Spanish
MRI of the Body (Chest, Abdomen, Pelvis) (American College of Radiology, Radiological Society of North America) Also in Spanish
Needle Biopsy (Mayo Foundation for Medical Education and Research) Also in Spanish

Prevention and Risk Factors

25 Ways to Love Your Liver (American Liver Foundation)

Treatments and Therapies

Dandelion (National Center for Complementary and Integrative Health)
Liver Transplantation: MedlinePlus Health Topic (National Library of Medicine) Also in Spanish
Milk Thistle (National Center for Complementary and Integrative Health)
Transjugular Intrahepatic Portosystemic Shunt (TIPS) (American College of Radiology, Radiological Society of North America) Also in Spanish

Related Issues

Careful: Acetaminophen in Pain Relief Medicines Can Cause Liver Damage (Food and Drug Administration)
Cirrhosis and Portal Hypertension (American Academy of Family Physicians) Also in Spanish
Hepatic Encephalopathy (American Liver Foundation)
Kava Linked to Liver Damage (National Center for Complementary and Integrative Health)
Liver Disease and Adult Vaccination (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention)

Specifics

Acute Liver Failure (Mayo Foundation for Medical Education and Research) Also in Spanish
Alagille Syndrome (National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases)
Benign Liver Tumors (American Liver Foundation)
Enlarged Liver (Mayo Foundation for Medical Education and Research)
Gilbert's Syndrome (Mayo Foundation for Medical Education and Research) Also in Spanish
Liver Cysts: A Cause of Abdominal Pain? (Mayo Foundation for Medical Education and Research) Also in Spanish
Liver Hemangioma (Mayo Foundation for Medical Education and Research)
Portal Hypertension (Merck & Co., Inc.) Also in Spanish
Primary Sclerosing Cholangitis (National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases)
Primary Sclerosing Cholangitis (PSC) (American Liver Foundation)

Genetics

Genetics Home Reference: Alagille syndrome (National Library of Medicine)
Genetics Home Reference: Alpers-Huttenlocher syndrome (National Library of Medicine)
Genetics Home Reference: benign recurrent intrahepatic cholestasis (National Library of Medicine)
Genetics Home Reference: childhood myocerebrohepatopathy spectrum (National Library of Medicine)
Genetics Home Reference: congenital bile acid synthesis defect type 1 (National Library of Medicine)
Genetics Home Reference: congenital bile acid synthesis defect type 2 (National Library of Medicine)
Genetics Home Reference: congenital generalized lipodystrophy (National Library of Medicine)
Genetics Home Reference: congenital hepatic fibrosis (National Library of Medicine)
Genetics Home Reference: Crigler-Najjar syndrome (National Library of Medicine)
Genetics Home Reference: Gilbert syndrome (National Library of Medicine)
Genetics Home Reference: glycogen storage disease type III (National Library of Medicine)
Genetics Home Reference: glycogen storage disease type VI (National Library of Medicine)
Genetics Home Reference: hepatic veno-occlusive disease with immunodeficiency (National Library of Medicine)
Genetics Home Reference: intrahepatic cholestasis of pregnancy (National Library of Medicine)
Genetics Home Reference: MPV17-related hepatocerebral mitochondrial DNA depletion syndrome (National Library of Medicine)
Genetics Home Reference: progressive familial intrahepatic cholestasis (National Library of Medicine)
Genetics Home Reference: Rotor syndrome (National Library of Medicine)
Genetics Home Reference: tyrosinemia (National Library of Medicine)

Videos and Tutorials

Digestive System: The Inside Story (Johns Hopkins Medicine)
Segment V Liver Resection (BroadcastMed) - University of Arizona Medical Center, Tucson, AZ, 08/20/2015

Statistics and Research

FastStats: Chronic Liver Disease and Cirrhosis (National Center for Health Statistics)
LiverTox: Clinical and Research Information on Drug-Induced Liver Injury (National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases, National Library of Medicine)

Clinical Trials

ClinicalTrials.gov: Alagille Syndrome (National Institutes of Health)
ClinicalTrials.gov: Gilbert Disease (National Institutes of Health)
ClinicalTrials.gov: Liver Diseases (National Institutes of Health)

Journal Articles References and abstracts from MEDLINE/PubMed (National Library of Medicine)

Find an Expert

American Liver Foundation
Find a Liver Expert (American College of Gastroenterology)
National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases

Children

Alagille Syndrome (American Liver Foundation)
Biliary Atresia (National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases)
Galactosemia (American Liver Foundation)
Type I Glycogen Storage Disease (American Liver Foundation)

Patient Handouts

ALP isoenzyme test (Medical Encyclopedia) Also in Spanish
Ascites (Medical Encyclopedia) Also in Spanish
Diet - liver disease (Medical Encyclopedia) Also in Spanish
Hepatic encephalopathy (Medical Encyclopedia) Also in Spanish
Hepatomegaly (Medical Encyclopedia) Also in Spanish
Liver disease (Medical Encyclopedia) Also in Spanish
Liver scan (Medical Encyclopedia) Also in Spanish

Basics

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Research

Resources

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