What is the liver function test?

Prenatal liver function tests mainly check whether the expectant mother has diseases such as hepatitis. It cannot check whether the fetus has hepatitis. However, many hepatitis diseases are contagious, especially hepatitis B and hepatitis C. If a pregnant woman has hepatitis B or hepatitis C, it can be transmitted to the baby, so it is necessary to have a prenatal checkup to check liver function. The liver function test mainly checks whether there is any abnormality in the secretion of alanine aminotransferase and other enzymes.

What is the liver function test?

Prenatal liver function tests are mainly to check whether the expectant mother suffers from diseases such as hepatitis, because pregnancy will increase the burden on the liver. If the mother's liver function is abnormal, it will affect the health of the mother and baby during pregnancy. Therefore, prenatal check-ups require liver function tests, and the data obtained from the tests, such as alanine aminotransferase, aspartate aminotransferase, total bilirubin, direct bilirubin and indirect bilirubin, can be used to assess the health of the mother and baby and determine whether the pregnant woman's body is suitable for continuing the pregnancy.

Harms of abnormal liver function:

1. The expectant mother and fetus are constantly metabolizing every day, and the toxins and wastes produced by metabolism are more than before pregnancy. If the expectant mother's liver function is abnormal after pregnancy and the toxins and waste cannot be handled in time, it is easy to cause poisoning of the mother and fetus.

2. If the liver function of a pregnant woman is abnormal, she will not be able to produce the various proteins needed by the body, thus affecting the functions of other organs.

3. Due to the lack of sufficient coagulation factors, heavy bleeding is very likely to occur during delivery, endangering the health of pregnant women.

2 How to check liver function during prenatal examination

Prenatal liver function tests for pregnant women are performed by drawing venous blood, about 2 to 3 ml. Most hospitals can give results on the same day. It is recommended to have liver function tests in the morning so that the results can be obtained in the afternoon. Things to note before drawing blood from a vein:

1. Before checking the blood sample, the expectant mother's name should be confirmed with the nurse to prevent any discrepancy between the two.

2. The expectant mother should lie down or sit, with her arms stretched out and placed flat on a pillow at the edge of the bed or on the table to expose the puncture site. The elbow vein is usually used. When the elbow vein is not obvious, the veins on the back of the hand, wrist, fossa and outer ankle can be used.

3. Disinfection and blood collection: After the nurse finds a suitable vein for blood collection, she can disinfect the expectant mother, apply a compression cuff, and draw blood by puncture. When the required amount of blood is collected, the cuff is removed, the wound is pressed with a sterile dry cotton ball (swab), and the needle is pulled out. If the expectant mother's shirt sleeves are tight, the tight sleeves should be taken off before blood is drawn to avoid affecting venous return and causing subcutaneous bleeding.

4. After drawing blood from the blood collection site, the expectant mother should press the wound with a sterile dry cotton ball (swab) for about 5 minutes, and use the stop of bleeding as the criterion.

Things to note after blood collection:

1. If you feel uncomfortable after blood collection, you can drink hot water or hot sugar water orally and keep warm. Generally, the discomfort will be relieved after a few minutes.

2. If subcutaneous bleeding occurs, apply cold compress in the early stage to reduce local congestion and bleeding. After three days, hot compress should be applied to improve blood circulation, reduce inflammatory edema, and accelerate the absorption of subcutaneous bleeding.