Gastroenterology Flashcards
What are the stages of Alcoholic Liver Disease?
Alcohol related fatty liver - resolves in 2 weeks
Alcoholic hepatitis - Reversible
Cirrohis - ireversabile
What are the CAGE questions?
Cut down?
annoyed when people mention your drinking?
Guilt?
Early morning
What is the alcohol assesment score questionaire?
AUDIT 10 questions
Signs of liver disease?
Jaundice
hepatomegaly
spider naevi
Palmar erythema
gynaecomastia
ascities
caput medusa
What blood results would you find in alcohol misuse?
rasied MCV on FBC
raised ALT and AST
Especially raised gamma-GT
What investgations can you do for Acoholic liver disease?
ultrasound “fibroscan”
Liver biopsy
CT
How do you treat acute alcohol withdrawl?
Diazepam and pabrinex
What is pabrinex?
B vitamins. Thimaine is a B vitamin
What are the four most common causes of liver disease?
Alcoholic liver disease
Non alcholoic fatty liver disease
Hep B
Hep C
What tells you about the synthetic function of the liver?
Poor synthetic function will show in low albumin and a long prothrombin time
What should you check for in patients with cirrohsis?
alpha-fetoprotein for hepatocellular carcinoma
What is alpha-fetoprotien a marker of?
hepatocellular carcinoma
What is the follow up for people with eosphageal varices?
If liver cirhosis then ultrasound every 6 months
for varices endoscopy every 3 years
What score do you do for a liver transplant?
MELD score
What is the 5 year survival with liver cirrohsis?
50%
What is the best diet for someone with liver cirrohsis?
High protein high calorie low salt
eat every 3 hours
What are the treatment options for stable oesopagheal varices?
Banding
propanolol
What is the treatment of bleeding oesphageal varices?
Call anasthetics and general surgery
Terlipressin
correct coagulopathy with fresh frozen plasma and vitamin K
What causes ascities?
increased portal pressure leads to fluid leaking out of the cappliaries in the liver and bowel. Thus reduced flow into the kidneys causes aldosterone release and fluid retention
What is the treatment for ascites?
Low sodium diet
anti-aldosterone diurectic like spironolactone
paracentesis
What is spironolactone?
anti-aldosterone diuretic
What is the big risk in someone with ascities?
Spontaneous Bacterial Peritonitis - Needs treated with ascitic culture and IV ABX
What is hepatorenal syndrome?
nackered liver causes renal hypotension and renal failure- life threatening without liver transplant
What is hepatic encephalopathy?
Amonia poisioning which causes confusion and reduced consciousness
Treat by clearing out gut bio with laxatives and abx
how common is NAFLD
possibly 1/3 of adults
What are the stages of NAFLD?
NAFLD
Non alcoholoic steatoheptatitis NASH
Fibrosis
Cirrhosis
What are the risk factors for NAFLD?
Same as cardiac and diabetes risk
What should you do to investigate new abnormal LFTs?
Hep B and C serology
check autoantibodies (autoimmune hepatitis, primary sclerosis, primary sclerosing cholangitis)
Alpha 1 anti-trypsin leves
ferretin and transferrin for hereditary haemochromatosis
How do you ivestigate for NAFLD?
Do a NAFLD fibrosis score
What are the symptoms of hepatitis?
abdominal pain
fatigue
puritis
muscle and joint aches
nausea and vomiting
jaundice
How is hep B transmitted?
blood or bodily fluids
What is the prognosis of Hep B?
Most recover in 2 months
Is there a vaccine for Hep B or Hep C?
There is a vaccine for hep B only
What is the prognosis for Hep C?
25% - Fight it off
75% - Chronic infection
How do you test for hep C?
Hep C antibody screening test
then
Hep C RNA test for viral load
How do you manage hep C?
confirm diagnosis
Notify Public Health
refer to gastro or infectious diseases
stop smoking and alcohol