Liver and Friends Flashcards
What does the liver do (4 things)
glucose and fat metabolism
detoxification and excretion (of bilirubin, ammonia and drugs)
protein synthesis (albumin, clotting factors)
Defence against infections with the reticulendothelial system
what is cirrhosis
this is scarring and disorganisation of the liver tissue i response to constant low grade injury
how much more liver do we have than we need?
3x
presentation of liver injury
malaise
nausea
anorexia
jaundice
as it gets more severe: confusion, bleeding, liver pain, hypoglycaemia
presentation of chronic liver injury
ascites
oedema
haematemesis (due to oesophageal varices)
malaise
anorexia
easy bruising
itching
hepatomegaly
more rarely: jaundice and confusion
what are the transaminases and why are they useful for LFT
alanine transaminase (ALT) and aspartate transaminase (AST) are enzymes used by hepatocytes to metabolise amino acids for energy
if the liver is inflamed the hepatocytes will bust and release these
they give no indication of liver FUNCTION only level of inflammation of liver
what is jaundice
- raised serum bilirubin
- can be unconjugated (pre-hepatic)
- gilberts
- haemolysis
- or conjugated (cholestatic)
- liver disease (hepatic)
- bile duct obstruction (post-hepatic)
what does the term cholestatic refer to and what are two key indicators of it
it’s liver disease that is hepatic and post hepatic
dark urine and pale stools
the jaundice seen will be due to conjugated bilirubin
what is conjugated and unconjugated bilirubin
both are products from the breakdown of haem in blood (that happens in macrophages in the spleen and bone marrow)
CB is just UCB that has been attached to a glucaronic acid in the liver
this makes CB water soluble whereas UCB is lipid soluble and requires albumin for transport in the blood
how will urine, stools, itching and liver tests change in pre-hepatic/cholestatic jaundice
what tests for liver disease
- liver function tests
- US
- in biliary obstruction 90% have dilated intrahepatic bile ducts
- CT
- Magnetic resonance cholangiogram (MRCP)
risk factors for gall stones
fat
female
forty
fertile
also: liver disease, ileal disease
gallstone management when they’re in the gallbladder
laporoscopic cholecystectomy
gallstone management when they’re in the bile duct
- surgery for large stones
- Endoscopic retrograde cholangio-pancreatography (ERCP)
- this is where a tube goes in through the mouth to where the bile duct meets the small bowel and widens the sphincter to allow the stone through
- stones can also be removed with a basket?
what does cholestatic jaundice refer to
it is jaundice with dark urine and pale stools
this means it is hepatic or post-hepatic
if they have jaundice and rigors what does this tell you
it tells you that they have cholangitis which is inflammation of the bile duct system normally due to bacterial infection following obstruction
if someone has jaundice what must you always ask about
drugs they started recently
drug induced liver injury is common
what percentage of acute hepatitis is drug induced
what percentage of acute liver failure is drug induced (what drug is this mainly due to)
30% acute hepatitis
>65% of acute liver failure - mainly paracetamol
onset of DILI
usually within 1-12 weeks of starting
and can be several weeks after stopping (co-amoxiclav can do this)
when does DILI resolve
90% within 3 months of stopping the drugs
what are the usual suspects for DILI
- about 40% of the time it’s caused by antibiotics
- all TB drugs
- flucloxacillin
- also often CNS drugs
- carbamazepine
- valproate
what is NAC and how does it work?
N-acetyl cysteine turns the reactive intermediate produced by paracetamol in the liver to a non-reactive product.
Management of paracetamol induced fulminant hepatic failure.
- N acetyl Cysteine (NAC)
- Supportive to correct
- coagulation defects
- fluid electrolyte and acid base balance
- renal failure
- hypoglycaemia
- encephalopathy
what factors make paracetamol overdose more dangerous
late presentation (NAC is less effective after 24hrs)
acidosis
very high prothrombin time
very high serum creatinine
if they have these factors then consider an emergency liver transplant
causes of ascites
- chronic liver disease
- ± portal vein thrombosis
- hepatoma
- TB
- Neoplasia
- ovary, uterus, pancreas
- Pancreatitis
Ascites management
- fluid and salt restriction
- diuretics
- spironolactone
- ±frusemide (loop diuretic)
- large volume paracentesis + albumin
what is the main cause of liver death in the UK
alcoholic liver disease
treatment for bleeding oesophagael varices
remergency resuscitation with blood and plasma
emergency gastroscopic banding
terlipressin is given which causes vasoconstriction
propanolol also given
what are the causes, pathologies and consequences of portal hypertension
- causes
- cirrhosis
- fibrosis
- portal vein thrombosis
- pathology
- increased hepatic resistance leads to increased splanchnic blood flow
- this causes a back up which causes dilatation of the veins draining the rest of the GI system including the oesophagus
- consiquences
- varices (oesophageal and gastric)
- splenomegaly
- caput medusae
how many liver transplants are there in the UK every year? and how many of these are for alcoholic liver disease
there are 700 pa and 100 of them are for alcoholic liver disease
what 6 things might cause a sudden exascerbation of Chronic liver disease
constipation
drug changes
GI bleeds
Infection
Metabolite imbalances (hyponatraemia -kalaemia -glycaemia)
alcohol withdrawal (rarely)
why are liver patients vulnerable to infection?
impaired reticulo endothelial function
more permeable gut wall
reeduced opsonic activity (complement produced by the liver)
what is the commonest serious infection in cirrhosis patients and how is it diagnosed
spontaneous bacterial peritonitis
diagnosis is made based on high volume of neutrophils in the ascetic fluid
do blood cultures too
what is coma in chronic liver patients likely to be due to?
3 broad causes
- hepatic encephalopathy (usually caused by high ammonia)
- hyponatraemia/hypoglycaemia
- intracranial event
- alcoholic patients more vulnerable to subdural haematoma due to cerebral atrophy exposing bridging veins
why does liver dysfuntion cause coagulopathy - 3 main reasons
- impaired coagulation factor synthesis
- vitamin k deficiency due to cholestasi
- thrombocytopenia
- this is due to portal hypertension causing congestive splenomegaly which itself leads to pooling of thrombocytes in the spleen
which is the best analgesic to use in liver disease
paracetamol is safest in therapeutic doses
they are more sensitive to opiates
and NSAIDd cause renal failure
treatment for hepatic encephalopathy
lactulose
treatment for ascites
salt/fluid restriction
diuretics
paracentesis
causes of chronic liver disease (6 main causes and some subtypes)
- Alcohol
- NAFLD
- Viral Hepatitis (B and C)
- Immune
- autoimmune hepatitis
- primary biliary cholangitis
- slerosing cholangitis
- Metabolic
- Wilson’s
- Haematochromatosis
- alpha1 antitrypsin deficiency
- Vascular
- Budd-Chiari
What is the standard battery of tests when someone presents with chronic liver disease
- Viral serology to HepB and HepC
- Immunology for AMA, ANA, ASMA and Coeliac antibodies
- checking for autoimmune conditions
- Biochemistry
- iron studies
- lipids and glucose (metabolic syndrome is a major driver of NASH)
- alpha 1 trypsin levels
- Raidology - USS, CT, MRI
- you never know when you’ll find a tumour
draw a table for AIH, PBC, PSC for the criteria:
raised globulins
autoantibodies
other AI diseases
F:M
genetic associations
response to steroid therapy
which different tissues do PBC, PSC and AIH affect
AIH - hepatocytes
PBC - the small bile ducts
sclerosing cholangitis - can affect the small bile ducts but mainly the large duct
autoimmune hepatitis:
prevalence in UK
gender preponderance
UK prevalence is 1-2/10,000
it is 70-75% women
what is the treatment for AIH
90% response to prednisolone and azathioprine
primary biliary cholangitis has a strong association with which autoantibody
antimitochondrial antibodies in 95% cases
what is the prevalence of PBC and what is the gender preponderance
~ 25/ 1,000,000 and it’s 90% women
how does primary biliary cholangitis present
Itching and/or fatigue (this is the main one)
sometimes found due asymptomatic lab abnormalities
dry eyes
joint pains (revved up immune system)
varicael bleeding
ascites/jaundice (sometimes)
treatment of cholestatic itch
antihistamines help a little
cholestyramine helps in about half of cases (it is a bile acid sequestrant)
what other autoimmune conditions is PBC associated with
- it is very often associated with one of the following
- Sjorgens
- Thyroiditis
- RA
- Coeliac
what is mrcp
magnetic resonance cholagiopancreatography
what are two complications of primary sclerosing cholangitis
strictures and gallstones
presentation of primary sclerosing cholangitis
itching
pain
rigors
jaundice
over 50% have IBD
riased alk phos and GGT
treatment for PSC
liver transplant
treatment for PBC
ursodeoxycholic acid (found in bear bile)
improves liver enzymes and reduces inflammation
it is a secondary bile acid
it reduces rate of death and liver transplant
also give fat soluble vitamin supplements
colestyramine may help pruritis
liver transplant for end stage disease
what causes haemochromatosis
mutation in HFE on chromosome 6
they have uncontrolled intestinal iron absorption with deposition in liver, heart and pancreas
iron is stored in the liver if it is not converted into haemoglobin
presentation of haemochromatosis
high ferritin
high ALT and AST
gross iron staining on liver biopsy ± cirrhosis
treatment of haemachromatosis
desferrioxamine
venesection
what is the inheritance pattern of haemochromatosis
autosomal recessive
diagnosis of haemochromatosis
suggested by high ferritin
diagnosed by HFE genotyping (C282Y) and liver biopsy (gross iron staining)
risk factors for hepatocellular carcinoma
- Most occur in patients with cirrhosis
- highest risk being in patients with haemochromatosis or those who have had HepB or C
- lower risk (but still significant) is alcoholic cirrhosis
- male sex
presentation of hepatocellular carcinoma
may present with decompensation of liver disease
weight loss
ascites
abdo pain
50% of HCCs produce what?
alpha fetoprotein
treatment for HCC
transplantation
resection
local ablative therapy (including some targeted radio and percutaneous administration of chemical agents)
sorafenib is a recently developed targeted therapy
what percentage of the population have NAFL
25% of the population
risk factors for NAFL
obesity
diabetes
hyperlipidaemia
what is the commonest cause of mildly elevated LFTs
NAFL
what is the difference between NAFL and NASH
NASH is a type of NAFL where the fat droplets have caused inflammation and fibrosis
what is the best treatment for NAFL and NASH
no effective drug treatments
weight loss works well
very brief summary of alpha1 anti-trypsin deficiency
genetic disorder that results in the inability to export alpha1 antitrypsin from the liver
results in protein retention in the liver and liver disease
phenotypic presentation is variable but can include neonatal jaundice and chronic liver disease in adults
there is no medica treatment
hepatic vein occlusion causes
thrombosis (this is budd chiari syndrome) and it may indicate an underlying thrombotic disorder
veno-occlusive disease (irradiation and anti-neoplastic drugs)
presentation of hepatic vein occlusion
liver enlargement
abnormal LFTs
ascites
acute liver failure
hepatic vein occlusion
anticoagulation
liver transplantation
what are the viral causes of hepatitis (try and name 10)
Hep ABC
Hep D and E
Yellow fever
EBV
CMV
Toxoplasma
Influenza
Coxsackie virus
draw Hep ABCDE table including route of transmission, whether it’s a chronic infection and prevention
symptoms of acute hepatitis
malaise
myalgia
fever
nausea/vomiting
cholestatic jaundice (pale stools and dark urine)
RUQ pain
tender hepatomegaly
test results of acute hepatitis
high AST
high ALT
high alk phos
low albumin
high bilirubin
Hep A is what type of virus
picornavirus
meaning small rna virus
Hep A transmission
- faeco-oral route
- contaminated food/water
- shellfish
- travellers
- infected food handlers
- close personal contact
- household
- sexual
- blood
- IVDU
- contaminated food/water
what type of vaccine is the HepA vaccine, and who should have it
it’s inactivated hep A virus
travellers
work exposure
prevention of secondary case
lifestyle risk
other liver disease
what kind of virus is hepatitis B virus and where does it replicate
Hepadnavirus
it’s a dna virus
replicates in hepatocytes
what percentage of adults and children will clear a Hep B infection
>90% adults
<50% children
Hepatitis B Serology - can you draw the table for acute, previous exposure, chronic + low infectivity and chronic + high infectivity
there are two antigens HBsAg and HBeAg
if you have antibodies against all of them and none of the antigens present themselves then you have previously cleared the infection
if you have the antigens and no antibodies then it’s acute hepB
if you have chronic HBV and low infectivity then you don’t have Abs against HbsAg so it is still present
if you have chronic HBV and high infectivity then you don’t have Abs against either HBeAg or HBsAg but this is distinguishable from acute since you do have the HBcAb (HB core Ab)
which hepatitis virus is now endemic in the UK
hep E virus