Posted , 4 users are following.
My 25-year old nephew recently had bloodwork done and had elevated liver numbers. His doctor ordered a sonogram, and now thinks that cirrohsis might be a possibility and is ordering additional tests. Huh, help?
0 likes, 6 replies
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kim07763 sienna8912
Posted
I'm not a professional at all but did the sonogram show inflammation? Or did the physician just base that guess about cirrhosis on one blood test result? My husband, a close friend of mine, and I have all had high liver numbers (AST and ALT) in our blood work that ended up being transient and nothing to worry about. When this happened to all of us -- we are all non-alcoholic, exercising, healthy eating people in our 50s -- I did a lot of research on it and found that there is a lot of unnecessary and aggressive treatment of the 1 in 10 people whose test results come back with elevated liver numbers.
sienna8912 kim07763
Posted
kim07763 sienna8912
Posted
I hope they're just acting out of caution and that someone with more information about unusual contours will post. Very best wishes for him and for you and your family.
sienna8912 kim07763
Posted
Thank you so much, Kim. Doctors in this town do seem to be "test happy." He's also been on maintenance medication for a few years which has been known to elevate liver numbers, yet the doctor hasn't responded to that as a possibility. I wonder if lowering that dosage and then rechecking the bloodwork and another sono in six months would be a reasonable strategy. Yes, maybe someone with contour issues will comment. Thanks again, I appreciate your comments and good wishes.
Guest sienna8912
Posted
Cirrhosis at 25 years of age might be a new world record. Still best to follow up on the unusual sonogram.
I'd prefer a non-invasive fibroscan or fibrotest to biopsy though. Biopsies are only required when alternate methods like the above mentioned imaging or blood lab liver tests come back alarming.
Please look into these options before he consents to biopsy. A web search for "Fibroscan" or "fibrotest" might prove enlightening. I'm surprised his doc doesn't know about these.
sienna8912 Guest
Posted