A liver transplant surgery involves surgically substituting a problematic liver with a healthy liver from a different person. Usually, the healthy liver is taken from a person who has recently passed away. In some cases, a living person may also give away part of the liver. Usually, living donors are members of the family or someone who has a good blood type match. The liver regenerates lost tissues after a surgery; hence, the donor s liver becomes normal within a few weeks of surgery.

You may require a liver transplant if your liver does not function optimally, owing to the below mentioned conditions:

    Cirrhosis: This is a chronic disease of the liver wherein, scar tissues replace healthy tissues in the liver, thus, not allowing the liver to function optimally.
    Metabolic disease: Disorders that modify the activity of the chemicals in the body
    Acute hepatic necrosis: This is a disorder that causes the healthy tissues in the liver to die
    Autoimmune disorders or liver cancer: Autoimmune disorders can cause healthy tissues in the liver to die as the immune system in the body starts attacking healthy tissues. Formation of malignant tumors in the liver can impair liver functioning.

Procedure
You have to undergo certain procedures before the surgery is conducted; a general health exam, imaging tests, blood tests and a psychological exam are conducted before the surgery. Based on the functioning of the liver and some other factors, your suitability for the transplant will be determined.
The procedure begins with general anesthesia, following which an incision is made in the abdomen. The liver is then removed and replaced with a healthy one. Once the procedure is completed, the surgeon closes the incision with stitches.

Aftercare
Once the procedure is done with, you are kept in the intensive care unit for a few days. The doctor will monitor your progress and put you on medications. After the recovery, you will have to undergo check-ups at regular intervals. You may also have to take medications such as immunosuppressant to prevent your immune system from attacking the liver.

Liver Transplant Surgery - How Best To Care for it Post Surgery?

Cirrhosis of liver is slow and gradual replacement of normal healthy liver tissue with scar tissue which results in poor liver function and blockage of flow of blood through liver which comes from intestines. As more scar tissue replaces normal healthy liver, liver begins to fail.

What causes cirrhosis?

Alcohol: Amount of alcohol which can cause liver damage varies from person to person, however those who consume alcohol for long in significant amount are more prone to develop liver damage.
Hepatitis B or hepatitis C: Caused by hepatitis B and C viruses, respectively, which are acquired by contact with contaminated blood (like needlestick injury, blood transfusion, injection drug abuser), sexual contact with infected person and from mother to child during childbirth.
Non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD): Caused by presence of extra fat in liver (after excluding significant alcohol intake) which causes inflammation and scarring leading to cirrhosis. Usually seen in patients who are overweight or obese, having diabetes, high fat in blood, high blood pressure or metabolic syndrome.
Drugs causing liver injury.
Others: Autoimmune hepatitis (body`s own immunity acting against liver), Wilson disease (build up of copper in body), hemochromatosis (excess of iron in body), certain bile duct disorders, etc.
What are the symptoms of cirrhosis?

Early disease can present with nonspecific symptoms like weakness, fatigue (loss of energy), decrease wish to take food, vomiting or nausea, weight loss, etc.
Advanced disease can present with fluid accumulation in legs (edema) or abdomen (ascites), facial puffiness, yellowish discoloration of eyes or urine (jaundice), redness of palm (palmer erythema), decrease urine output, small red lesions on skin, easy bleeding following trauma, blood coming out of mouth/anus/other body site, black colored feaces, mental confusion, flapping tremors of hand, etc. In men it can cause impotence, breast enlargement and shrinking of testis.
What are the complication of cirrhosis?

Portal hypertension: It is a common complication of cirrhosis which is due to increased pressure in portal vein. Portal vein is main blood vessel which carries blood to liver from stomach, intestines, spleen, gallbladder and pancreas. Because of scar formation in liver the normal flow of blood from these organs to liver is hampered. As a result of blockage of blood flow to liver there are few complications which can arise like accumulation of fluid in abdomen (ascites) and legs (edema), formation of enlarged veins (varices) in food pipe (esophagus), stomach, etc., enlargement of spleen (splenomegaly), mental confusion/altered behavior/altered sensorium (hepatic encephalopathy), respiratory discomfort (hepatic hydrothorax or hepato-pulmonary syndrome) or decrease urine output/rise in creatinine (hepato-renal syndrome).

Increase risk of infection because of immune system dysfunction.
Development of liver cancer (Hepatocellular carcinoma)
Easy brusibility or bleeding following light trauma.
Gall bladder stone formation
Metabolic bone disease
What are the stages of cirrhosis?

Compensated cirrhosis: Liver damage is damaged but no abdominal swelling (ascites), blood in vomiting or black/red color feaces (variceal bleed), altered behavior/sensorium (hepatic encephalopathy), respiratory discomfort (hepatic hydrothorax or hepato-pulmonary syndrome) or decrease urine output/rise in creatinine (hepato-renal syndrome).
Decompensated cirrhosis: Presence of abdominal swelling (ascites), blood in vomiting or black/red color feaces (variceal bleed), altered behavior/sensorium (hepatic encephalopathy), respiratory discomfort (hepatic hydrothorax or hepato-pulmonary syndrome) or decrease urine output/rise in creatinine (hepato-renal syndrome).
How cirrhosis is diagnosed?

Your doctor will take good history and do proper physical examination. If there is suspicion of cirrhosis then he will subject you to some blood test, ultrasound abdomen, fibroscan/elastography, upper GI endoscopy and if needed CT scan or MRI of abdomen or liver biopsy.

Ultrasound of abdomen in cirrhosis may shows coarse liver echotexture, nodular liver surface, dilated portal vein or collateral, enlarged spleen or abdominal fluid (ascites).

How to prevent cirrhosis?

Best way to avoid development of cirrhosis from predisposing stage of liver illness is to recognize and treat early. Few advices to keep liver healthy are:

Dietary modification: Eat healthy balanced diet. Avoid high calorie food or drinks, saturated fat, sugar and refined carbohydrates. Keep yourself hydrated.
Lifestyle modification: Maintain healthy body weight. Avoid being overweight or obese. Aerobic exercise (like brisk walk 30-45min/day atleast 5days/week) regularly helps to lower liver fat.
Avoid: Avoid use of contaminated needles, sharing of items of personal hygiene (like shaving razors, toothbrush, nail clippers, etc), use of illicit drugs, self medication with over the counter drugs or using drugs beyond doctor`s advice.
Practice safe protected sex
Alcohol
Motivate others: to stop drinking and follow hand hygiene and doctor`s advice.
Hand hygiene: Wash hand with soap and water regularly before eating, after going to toilet and after touching dirty objects.
Vaccination: For hepatitis A or hepatitis B, if you are not vaccinated or not already infected or unsafe antibody titre. Transmission rate of hepatitis B from mother to child at birth can be reduced with vaccination and immunization of newborn starting within 12 hours of birth as well as by using antiviral drugs (if indicated).
Prevent others from getting infected from you if you harbor virus causing liver damage.

How to treat cirrhosis?

Treatment of cirrhosis is based on cause of cirrhosis and complication of cirrhosis. Main aim of treatment in early stage of cirrhosis is to slow the progression of cirrhosis and prevent complications development

Stop alcohol, antiviral drugs for hepatitis b or hepatitis C, proper sugar level if diabetes, steroid or other medications for autoimmune hepatitis, medications to reduce copper from body in patients with Wilson`s disease, etc.
Drugs to lower portal pressure (beta-blocker or nitrates), drugs to remove fluid from body (diuretics), drugs to lower ammonia level for encephalopathy (lactulose and others), drugs to improve kidney function (albumin, terlipressin and others).
Opt for liver ransplant, If cirrhosis is life threatening or treatment of cirrhosis complication is ineffective.
Low salt high protein diet
Stop alcohol intake even if you have other cause of cirrhosis.
Stop smoking
Avoid over the counter drugs (especially pain killers)
Vaccinate if not done already or infected

Cirrhosis Of Liver - A Complete Guide!

Having some fat in your liver is legit. But, if you have too much of fat say more than 5%-10% of the organ's weight then you are at risk of getting fatty liver disease. At the onset, you can do one important thing to help your liver stop drinking. It causes fatty liver disease.

There are two main types of fatty liver disease

Alcoholic liver disease or ALD
Non-alcoholic fatty liver disease or NAFLD
If you are a woman who is pregnant, you can also get fatty liver disease.
Alcoholic Liver Disease (ALD)

You can get ALD from drinking lots of alcohol. ALD can also present itself after a short period of heavy drinking.
Genetics has a role to play in ALD. Genes can make you hit the bottle and increase your chances of becoming an alcoholic.
Genes can also impact the way your body breaks down the alcohol you drink.
Other root causes of ALD are:

Hep C doesn't cause ALD. it is one of the causes of fatty liver. 
Hep B is also a cause of fatty liver. There are certain medications which may be helpful from person to person besides lifestyle management.
Excess iron in your body
Obesity
Non-alcoholic Fatty Liver Disease (NAFLD)
The cause of NAFLD is not clear, but we know that it tends to run in families.
NAFLD is also more common in the middle-aged and the obese or, those who have high cholesterol and diabetes.

Other risk factors are:

Certain medicines
Viral hepatitis
Auto-immune or inherited liver disease
Gaining weight fast
Malnutrition
Acute Fatty Liver during Pregnancy
Fat can build up in your liver when you're pregnant, causing this kind of fatty liver disease.
It s a serious condition as it can be risky for both you and your baby. It can cause liver or kidney failure in you and your child, both.
Causes are unknown. But, hormones may play a role.
Symptoms of fatty liver disease
This disease can sometimes cause no symptoms for long. But, the things to look out for are-

Feeling tired all the time
Loss of appetite or weight
General weakness
Nausea
Confusion and trouble concentrating
Your liver can become larger
Pain in the centre or right upper part of your belly
In ALD, your symptoms get worse after bouts of heavy drinking. Fatty liver disease is diagnosed during routine exams when your doctor notices your enlarged liver. Ultrasound, blood tests to check for certain enzymes and biopsy of the liver are performed to confirm it.

Treatment

There is no specific treatment for the fatty liver disease.
You can manage it by managing your diabetes and giving up drinking. If you have ALD and you don t quit, you get complications like alcoholic hepatitis or cirrhosis.
Even if you have a non-alcoholic fatty liver disease, alcohol cessation helps.
Losing weight if you are overweight also helps to manage this disease and having a good balanced diet with exercise also shows benefits.

Fatty Liver Disease - Signs You Are Suffering From It!

A number of health problems today are caused by an unhealthy lifestyle. One such condition is a fatty liver or collection of fat in the liver. The buildup of fats in the liver is known as Fatty Liver. The liver processes everything that you eat or drink and filters harmful substances from the blood. If too much fat has accumulated in the liver, this process gets interfered with. These fat cells cause inflammation of the liver tissues which in time can lead to scarring and liver fibrosis. On its own, a fatty liver is relatively harmless but when it reaches this stage, it can be life threatening.

The reasons for Fatty Liver can be alcoholism, incorrect diet, obesity, diabetes, or even excess use of medication.

If ignored or left untreated, many liver diseases will lead to permanent and irreversible damage to the liver and can be a significant threat to your health. But, there is no standard form of treatment for a fatty liver. If diagnosed in its early stages, treating the underlying cause can stop the progression of the disease and even resolve it. Homeopathy addresses the underlying causes of a disease and hence is an ideal form of treatment for a fatty liver. It can reduce the symptoms of this disease, improve liver functioning and even reverse the condition if treatment is started early.

The Homeopathic medicines, which are made of natural substances, are given to patients after studying the unique symptoms experienced by each individual. Homeopathy is one of the most popular holistic systems of medicine. The selection of remedy is based upon the theory of individualization and symptoms similarity by using holistic approach. Homoeopathy is very proficient in managing all the symptoms of Fatty liver disease and furthermore plays a vital role in preventing relapse of the condition.

Some of the most common homeopathic medicines for fatty liver are

    Chelidonium: This is often used to treat a fatty liver accompanied by right upper abdominal pain. In such cases, the liver may be enlarged and the patient also usually suffers from constipation or experience nausea and vomiting. The patient will also probably suffer from excessive weakness and have a desire for hot food and drinks.

    Lycopodium: A fatty liver accompanied by acidity can be treated with this type of homeopathic medication. In such cases, the patient will also complain of bloating and belching with a burning sensation. These symptoms tend to worsen n the evening and the patient may have an intense craving for sweets and hot drinks.

    Phosphorus: This is used to treat cases of fatty acid which triggers regurgitation accompanied by sour belching. In some cases, the patient may also experience pain in the liver and excessive flatulence. Vomiting may also occur along with weakness while passing stool.

    Calcarea carb: Obese patients suffering from this condition can be treated with calcarea carb. These people often have a distended abdomen, are lactose intolerant and suffer from chronic constipation. They are also overly sensitive to cold air and sweat excessively from the head.

    Nux Vomica: homeopathic remedy for fatty liver with pain in abdomen after eating.

Nux vomica is great for any abdominal problem including fatty liver caused by excessive consumption of alcohol. These patients often suffer from abdominal pain a few hours after eating with sour or bitter tasting belches. They may constantly feel the urge to pass stool but are unable to do so.

Though homeopathic remedies have negligible side effects when taken in low dosages, they should never be self-prescribed. If you suffer from a fatty liver, consult a homeopathic doctor immediately who can diagnose it properly and treat you accordingly.

5 Homeopathic Remedies for Fatty Liver

In modern day societies of intense stress and work pressure, the average diet mostly comprises of street foods, packaged fast foods and processed foods. Such stress and overexposure to a lot of toxins (present in the processed food, fast foods, and street foods) disable the liver from performing its primary function of cleansing the toxic materials through the skin, the respiratory and the digestive system. Besides, this overexposure to toxins also disrupts bile formation, which hinders the absorption of necessary nutrients, resulting in a severe disruption in health. Also, liver is responsible for the proper functioning of the eyes, the brain, the kidneys and the joints in the body. Thereby, it is necessary to include these 7 foods in your diet which help to detoxify your liver from the excessive toxins and allow it to function properly.

    Avocado: Avocados contain a rich amount of the antioxidant glutathione, which helps the liver to fight against the toxins.
    Garlic: Garlic contains a rich amount of selenium and allicin, which helps to cleanse the liver. A little amount of garlic helps in the activating liver enzymes which in turn helps to eliminate the toxins from the body.
    Green tea: Green tea contains a rich amount of the plant antioxidant known as Catechin, which help the liver to function properly. It also helps to protect the liver from the toxins.
    Beets and Carrots: Beets and carrots contain a rich amount of beta - carotenes and plant flavonoids which help to regulate the overall function of the liver.
    Turmeric: A little amount of turmeric in your daily meal helps in the cleansing the liver by helping the enzymes to get rid of the toxic carcinogens.
    Green Vegetables: Green Vegetables like spinach, bitter gourd and chicory contains a rich amount of detoxifying components, which helps in the neutralization of heavy metals which in turn regulates the cleansing ability of the liver. Green vegetables also help in the simulation of the flow of bile.
    Grape Fruit: Grape fruit contains a rich amount of vitamin C and antioxidants which initiates the cleansing process of the liver. Grape fruit also help in the formation of enzymes that destroys toxins like carcinogens.

Cleanse Your Liver - 7 Natural Foods that Will Help You 

Hepatic Steatosis, better known as Fatty liver is a term which describes the condition where fat gets built up in the liver. The liver is the second largest organ in the body and it plays an important function of processing everything we eat or drink and then filter out harmful elements from the blood. This process gets interrupted if there is too much in the liver. We generally call the liver as fatty, when fat accounts for more than 5 to 10 percent of the weight of your liver.

The problem of fatty liver is quite common, affecting around 10 to 20 percent of people living in America without cirrhosis or inflammation. According to the American Liver Foundation, the majority of the cases of fatty liver are detected between ages 40 and 60.

Symptoms of fatty liver
Basically one cannot associate any symptom with fatty liver, though once this situation arises, people might experience fatigue or unusual discomfort in the abdomen.
Excess fat in the liver can lead to its inflammation and in that case, you might come across symptoms such as:

You don t feel like having any food due to poor appetite
One starts to lose weight
You might experience pain in the abdomen, which tends to interfere in your passing of urine.
As there is a loss of appetite, resulting in weight loss, muscles would start feeling weak.
Due to weakness in your muscles, you would easily get tired even when you have not any work that required a lot of exertion.
Causes of fatty liver
The most common reason behind fatty liver is alcohol. On the other hand, fatty liver can also occur among people, who are non-alcoholic.
In those circumstances, the fatty liver gets developed when the body creates too much fat or is unable to metabolize fat fast enough. The excess fat gets stored in the cells of the liver where it gets accumulated to form fatty liver disease.

The common causes for fatty liver, other than alcoholism are:

Obesity: Obesity is a condition when you gained too much bodyweight through accumulation of excess body fat. This becomes a major problem which leads to other problems like fatty liver.
Diabetes: Excess amount of blood sugar in your system, which results in diabetes, raises the risk of developing fatty liver disease.
Genetic Inheritance: If you have someone in your family, father, mother or anyone else, who has suffered from this problem of fatty liver, then it s quite certain that you might also catch up with this disease.
Treatment for fatty liver
You are always at risk if you get diagnosed with the problem of the fatty liver through blood tests, MRI scan and liver biopsy. Though there is no medication or surgery possible for treating this problem a doctor would provide certain recommendations to reduce the risk factors. These include:

Limiting or complete avoidance of alcohol
Keep a check on cholesterol and reduce the intake of sugar and other saturated fatty acids
Make a genuine attempt to lose weight
Control your blood sugar by walking daily and having a restricted diet

Fatty Liver Disease - Ways It Can Be Treated!

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