Liver Flashcards
Conditions
What is the transmission route of Hepatitis A?
Faecal-oral
What is the transmission route of Hepatitis B?
Blood
Blood products
Needles
Possibly venereal
What is the transmission route of Hepatitis C
Blood
Blood products
Needles
Possibly venereal
What damage does Hep A cause?
Direct cytopathic damage, not autoimmune
What damage does Hep B cause?
Hep B surface antigen sticks to liver cell surface and initiates immune response attacking the liver cell
Is there a vaccine for Hep C?
No, it mutates too quickly, difficult for the immune system to fight
Which virus has the most potential for chronicity and mortality?
Hep B
Hep C fluctuates
Hep A, relatively low risk
What are the three types of jaundice?
Physiological
Structural
Functional
What are the three subtypes of functional jaundice?
Prehepatic
Intrahepatic
Post hepatic
Which type of jaundice increases the risk of gallstones?
Prehepatic
Excess bilirubin from haemolysis, its unconjugated and insoluble, so concentrated in bile
What age group is physiological jaundice fairly common in?
Neonates
What can lead to structural jaundice?
Biliary atresia, where the bile duct fails to develop
What can lead to intrahepatic jaundice?
Acute viral hepatitis Cirrhosis Drug induced liver injury Alcoholic hepatitis Intrahepatic bile duct loss
In intrahepatic jaundice, what happens to the bilirubin?
It is mostly unconjugated and excreted in urine
What happens in post hepatic jaundice?
Interferes with biliary drainage, excess bilirubin is conjugated and leads to dark urine and pale stools
