Dr. Said I have cirrhosis need your help?

[shakeelrehman80]

I am diagnosed with hepatitis b virus. Dr. Said that I have Cirrhosis, portal hypertension and have HBV HBeAG negative. Dr. advised me only Entecavir  0.5mg medicine and constipation syrup.

Since I first time I meet the Dr. there are some questions left to ask. Please advise.

Q 1: As my reports are under please tell me what is my situation like I have cirrhosis or there is any positive hope lie?

Q 2: This medicine (Entecavir) is enough for me?

Q 3: What step should I take next?

Q 4: Can I take herbs with this medicine such as worldwide Dandelion known worldwide. Is this not effect the my medicine (Entcavir)?

 Q 5: I also take miracle juice (Mix juice of Beetroot, Apple and carrot) is this helpful or having no side effects?

Q 6: Any Suggestion Please (My reports information is as under)?

Q 7: What diet should I take (My Dr. said that I can eat each and every thing)?

Q8: Can I join Gym? Again my doctor said that you can join and there is no compulsion of taking as much weight?

I am looking very positive suggestions from your side

___________________________________________________________


My Reports:


Ultrasound 1:
Liver: reduced in size (9.9 ml in MCL). Irregular margin, moderately coarse (Moderate F2 to F3 fibrosis) parenchyma __________CLD. No focal defect. integrate biliary channels are not dilated. Spectral pattern of hepatic vein shows loss of W pattern.
PORTAL VASCULATURE: Portal vein (13mm Luminal dia) is of increased caliber with hepatopetal flow.
.............................
Repeat Ultrasound 2:
Liver: Liver measures 120 mm in cranio caudal dimension. The contours are irregular. Its tecture appears inhomogeneous. No intra hepatic biliary dlitaion noted. CBD measures 3.6 mm at porta hepatis. PV measures 10.3 mm and is clear. Portal vein as well as hepatic veins are seen tortuous at porta hepatis

...................
ESR: 05
HBsAG: 3571.51
.....................
1. Billubirin: 0.7
2. ALT: 79
3. AST: 35
4. Alkaline Phosphate: 148
5. Gamma GT: 83

Another repeat Test:
1. Billiburin: 0.80 mg/dL
2. Albumin Serum: 4.56 mg/dL
.......................
Prothrombine Time:
1. Patient: 11.0 Seconds
2. Control: 10.6
3. INR: 1.0
.......................
1. HB Surface Antibody: Non reactive (patient value: 0.00 mIU/ml)
2. Hepatitis Be Antigen: Non reactive (patient value: 0.350)
3. Hepatitis Be Ab: Reactive (Patient S/CO value:0.01)

[Lynn K]

Hi

I only see F2 to F3 while cirrhosis is F4

I had hep c and developed F4 cirrhosis 8 years ago and am still fine. People can live many years with cirrhosis. You really need to follow what your doctor says and get any testing he recommends. I assume your doctor is a hepatologist (liver specialist)

I will do my best with your questions but I am not a doctor just a person with cirrhosis

Q 1: As my reports are under please tell me what is my situation like I have cirrhosis or there is any positive hope lie? I have lived with cirrhosis for 8 years caused by hepatitis c. People can live many years with cirrhosis. Eat a healthy diet and listen to  and follow your doctors advice.

Q 2: This medicine (Entecavir) is enough for me? I believe that is the only medicine for hepatitis b believe in your doctor you can also see another doctor for a second opinion.

Q 3: What step should I take next? Follow your doctors recommendations. Don't drink alcohol, reduce salt in your diet.

Q 4: Can I take herbs with this medicine such as worldwide Dandelion known worldwide. Is this not effect the my medicine (Entcavir)? I recommend you not take herbs they do no good they may do harm as they are not regulated. Definitely ask your doctor his opinion about anything you want to take be it herbal supplement or headache medicine. DO NOT DRINK alcohol ever. Use care with any medicine especially pain medicines. If you take pain relievers ask your doctor what is safe for you and how to take them safely.

 Q 5: I also take miracle juice (Mix juice of Beetroot, Apple and carrot) is this helpful or having no side effects? It does not look like it would harm you I am doubtful it will have any positive effect on you liver. You cannot cure cirrhosis with diet. Ask your doctor and follow his recommendation about this but my best guess is it is fine.

Q 6: Any Suggestion Please (My reports information is as under)?
Except for your ALT your results are better than mine. The only reason your ALT is a little higher than mine is because I was cured of hep c. Before I was cured my ALT was similar to yours. Many of your lab tests are in normal range.

Q 7: What diet should I take (My Dr. said that I can eat each and every thing)?
If you are familiar with a heart smart diet that is a liver friendly diet also. Really just eat a healthy diet and try to avoid salt.

Q8: Can I join Gym? Again my doctor said that you can join and there is no compulsion of taking as much weight?
It is safe for you to exercise and good for your health. Your doctor says you can so you can. I go to the gym I need to go more.

Best of luck to you
Lynn

[shakeelrehman80]

Hi Lynn,

Many thanks for your very descriptive answers to my question which not only satisfied me but really encouraged me.

Please keep in touch I will get more good suggestions and experience from your side and I hope you will be recovered from this disease soon.

Please also tell me as if I don't have cirrhosis as mentioned in my report (F2-F3 fibrosis) then it is recoverable with medicines and with good diet. One more thing Dr. Write that I have portal hypertension and portal and hepatic vein are seen tortuous. Is this not a serious problem please advise.

Also somebody told me to start drinking coffee which has good impact on liver cirrhosis and detoxify the liver.

Thank you Lynn again and take care of yourself.

Regards
Shakeel

[Lynn K]

F2 and F3 is not cirrhosis F4 is cirrhosis. F means fibrosis so F2 is fibrosis (scarring) grade 2. The scale only goes to F4. However F3 is near cirrhosis so you should treat your liver as though it has cirrhosis to be like d to your liver.

The less damage the greater chance you have of recovery so being F2 to F3 is much better than being F4. However recovery requires putting a stop to the thing that is causing the damage. You can eat a healthy diet and avoid salt but if hep c cannot be eliminated it will continue to damage your liver. But by taking the medicine your doctor prescribes for hep b it can slow how much damage hep b is causing to your liver. So si c's right now there is no cure for hep b you need to take medicine to keep your liver healthy and give it a chance to heal.

Liver ultrasounds are not perfect to diagnosis Fibrosis a liver biopsy is more accurate. From what I understand portal hypertension is normally only seen in cirrhosis the tortuous hepatic vein is also a sign of portal hypertension.

My suggestions remain the same eat  healthy diet, avoid excess salt, take your medine as prescribed by your doctor and follow your doctors advice. You should ask him if you need to avoid lifting heavy weights if you have not been checked for esophageal varicies which can develop because of portal hypertension.

But again with care and listening to our doctors we can both live for many more years.

Best wishes to you
Lynn

[shakeelrehman80]

Thank you Lynn

[shakeelrehman80]

Hi Lynn,

Hope you are doing well.
I have some questions .
I feel some pain  under the ribs just under the chest. Is it normal?
I went to doctor on Friday he asked me to carry on entecavir and do lft test after that.

Somebody ask me to drink coffee alot which is good on cirrhosis. Is that true.

Thanks for your positive reply all the time. Take care of yourself.


Regards
Shakeek

[KimInTheForest]

Somebody ask me to drink coffee alot which is good on cirrhosis. Is that true.

Regards
Shakeek

Hi Shakeek. There have been a lot of studies in recent years that indicate that coffee consumption (3 or more cups per day) can help slow or prevent liver cirrhosis where there is a chronic burden on the liver like hepatitis or alcohol consumption. Here is one recent report:

http://hepatitiscnewdrugresearch.com/coffee-consumption-and-chronic-liver-disease.html

From the report: "The analysis found that an extra 2 cups of coffee per day may reduce the risk of cirrhosis by 44%, and it may nearly halve the risk of dying from cirrhosis."

best,
kim

[Lynn K]

Hi

While coffee can slow liver damage progression it cannot reverse cirrhosis. It can help slow progression of liver damage so slow worsening of the cirrhosis you already have.

Your liver is located on your right side just under your rib cage. The liver itself has no pain receptor nerve endings but all internal organs have a capsule of tissue that surrounds them that do have pain receptor nerves.

In cirrhosis if your liver is swollen and enlarged this can put pressure on this capsule tissue which can feel like a lower right quadrant pain. So while feeling this pain is not uncommon in liver disease no pain is "normal"per say. Pain is your body saying something is wrong. But while the pain is a signal of a problem unless it is severe it is likely something that you live with when you have cirrhosis.

I would still ask my doctor about it. Definately if you have significant pain that is not normal.