For patients with alcoholic liver disease, will their liver function recover after quitting drinking?

This is the 5252nd article of Da Yi Xiao Hu

Xiao Zhou is a manager of a company. Because of his work, he often has to attend social events, and he has to drink every time. After a long time, he got used to it. Instead, he felt uncomfortable without drinking. He always felt like something was missing. Gradually, he became addicted to alcohol and drank every day, whether he had something to do or not. He often drank until his brain blacked out.

Recently, Xiao Zhou gradually began to feel tired, had a poor appetite, felt nauseous, and disliked oil. He found that his urine became increasingly yellow, and people around him also noticed that his skin and eyes were obviously yellow. Xiao Zhou's neighbor is a doctor, and seeing Xiao Zhou's condition, he suggested that he go to the hospital to check his liver function. So Xiao Zhou came to Dr. Fang's clinic.

Doctor Fang asked Xiao Zhou, "Have you ever had any chronic liver disease before?"

Xiao Zhou replied no.

Doctor Fang asked again, "Have you had a cold or fever recently? Have you taken any medicine? Or have you taken any medicine, health products or Chinese herbal medicine for a long time due to any disease?"

Xiao Zhou shook his head. "I don't have any illness or take any medicine."

Doctor Fang asked again, "Do you drink alcohol normally?"

Xiao Zhou said, "I drink a lot. I've been drinking for ten years."

Doctor Fang, "How often do you drink? Do you drink a lot each time?"

Xiao Zhou, "I drink almost every day in the past two years. When I drink a lot, I drink a pound of liquor, and when I drink a little, I drink five or six ounces."

Doctor Fang understood that Xiao Zhou had severe alcoholic liver disease.

So, Dr. Fang admitted Xiao Zhou to the hospital.

Dr. Fang has been engaged in clinical work on liver diseases for 30 years and has seen many patients with liver damage caused by drinking: from simple fatty liver with normal liver function to alcoholic hepatitis with abnormal liver function, alcoholic liver fibrosis, and even alcoholic cirrhosis, liver failure, liver cancer and other types of liver diseases. Most patients with mild symptoms gradually recover after quitting drinking.

After coming to Shenzhen, Dr. Fang worked full-time in liver disease diagnosis and treatment. He found that there were many patients with alcoholic liver disease in Shenzhen, and patients with decompensated alcoholic cirrhosis, liver failure and even liver cancer were common. Even at the decompensated stage of cirrhosis, some patients still could not quit drinking. At the beginning, Dr. Fang tried his best to persuade them to quit drinking, and the patients agreed readily. However, they started drinking again not long after being discharged from the hospital. Some even drank secretly behind the doctors and nurses' backs during hospitalization, and the doctors were helpless.

After Xiao Zhou was hospitalized, the doctor prescribed him various test orders including liver function, coagulation function, abdominal B-ultrasound, etc.

The next day, the test results came out. Xiao Zhou's liver function was obviously abnormal. The transaminase level increased to over 2000, the bilirubin level increased to over 100, and the coagulation function also showed obvious abnormalities. Abdominal B-ultrasound indicated that the liver had cirrhosis and ascites had appeared.

When the doctor told Xiao Zhou the severity of his illness, Xiao Zhou was terrified. He had never thought that drinking alcohol could have such serious consequences. He was only in his 30s, with elderly parents and young children to take care of. What would they do if something happened to him?

For the first time, Xiao Zhou felt deeply guilty and reflected on his drinking problem.

Regarding alcoholic liver disease, Xiao Zhou has many questions in mind that he needs to consult his doctor.

When Dr. Fang was doing his ward rounds, Xiao Zhou asked all his questions, and Dr. Fang patiently answered them. Dr. Fang also took this opportunity to lead the residents and doctors in training to do a teaching ward round on alcoholic liver disease.

The following are Xiao Zhou's questions and Dr. Fang's answers:

Q: How do you get alcoholic liver disease?

Answer: Alcoholic liver disease is a liver disease caused by long-term excessive drinking. Alcohol enters the human body and is metabolized by the liver. Alcohol and its metabolites can cause toxic damage to the liver, causing fatty degeneration, inflammatory necrosis, and fibrosis of liver cells. The course of the disease can progress from simple fatty liver to alcoholic hepatitis and alcoholic liver fibrosis, and may eventually develop into cirrhosis, liver failure, etc.

Q: How long does it take to drink alcohol to develop alcoholic liver disease?

Answer: If men drink an average of more than 40 grams of alcohol per day (equivalent to 100 ml of 53-proof liquor, 125 ml of 40-proof liquor, 330 ml of red wine and rice wine, and 1250 ml of beer) and women drink an average of more than 20 grams per day (half of that of men), they may develop alcoholic liver disease after 5 years. If a person drinks more than 80 grams of alcohol at one time within 2 weeks, they may develop alcoholic liver disease.

Q: What are the symptoms of alcoholic liver disease?

Answer: When drinking alcohol causes serious damage to liver function, the patient may experience symptoms such as fatigue, poor appetite, nausea, vomiting, abdominal distension, yellow urine, yellow skin and sclera. In severe cases, cirrhosis and liver failure may occur, and the patient will experience ascites, gastrointestinal bleeding, malnutrition, severe infection, oliguria, anuria, and even impaired consciousness.

Q: Will liver function return to normal after quitting drinking?

A: For patients with alcoholic liver disease, quitting drinking is a key step to improve liver function and prevent the progression of the disease. First of all, the liver has a strong ability to repair itself. In the absence of other serious complications, liver damage may be reversed after quitting drinking. For example, some patients with mild alcoholic liver disease can gradually reduce fat deposits in the liver and gradually recover liver function after quitting drinking. However, the extent of this recovery depends on the extent of liver damage and individual differences. Secondly, the time of quitting drinking is crucial to liver recovery. The sooner you quit drinking, the greater the possibility of liver function recovery. If alcoholic liver disease has progressed to the late stage of cirrhosis, liver damage may be irreversible. In this case, although quitting drinking cannot completely restore liver function to normal, it can slow down the progression of the disease and reduce the risk of complications.

Q: How can one successfully quit drinking?

Answer: First, patients need to realize the dangers of continuing to drink alcohol, which may lead to progressive deterioration of liver disease and even be fatal in severe cases. In the late stage of liver disease, only a liver transplant can save lives.

Secondly, patients should establish a healthy and positive attitude, maintain sufficient self-discipline, and abstain from alcohol. Only by completely removing the inducement can they avoid continued damage to the liver.

Third, psychological support and behavioral intervention are also aspects that cannot be ignored in the process of quitting alcohol. Alcohol dependence may cause patients to have psychological problems such as anxiety, depression and sleep disorders, which may affect the effect of quitting alcohol and the recovery of liver function. Therefore, patients may need psychotherapy to help quit drinking, and psychological and emotional support from peers and family members is also important.

Finally, it should be emphasized that the recovery of liver function after quitting drinking is a long process that requires patience and continuous efforts. Patients should work closely with their doctors to monitor liver function regularly and adjust treatment plans according to the recovery of the liver.

Q: What else should I pay attention to after quitting drinking?

A: Quitting drinking cannot completely solve all problems. Patients with alcoholic liver disease may also need to cooperate with drug treatment, nutritional support and lifestyle changes. For example, patients may need to use liver protection drugs to improve the inflammatory damage of liver cells in alcoholic hepatitis, or use anti-fibrotic drugs to slow down the process of liver fibrosis.

In addition, nutritional support is very important during the process of quitting drinking. Alcoholic liver patients often suffer from malnutrition, and they need to ensure adequate calorie and nutrient intake to support liver repair after quitting drinking. For example, increasing protein intake can help repair damaged liver cells, while the right amount of vitamins and minerals can also help improve liver function.

Finally, maintaining a healthy lifestyle is also very important for the recovery of liver function. In addition to quitting drinking, patients should also quit smoking, maintain a moderate amount of exercise, avoid a high-fat diet, and have regular physical examinations. These measures can help improve liver health and prevent recurrence of the disease.

Through Dr. Fang's patient and detailed explanation, Xiao Zhou and his family learned that whether the liver of alcoholic liver patients can return to normal after quitting drinking depends on many factors, including the severity of liver damage, the timeliness of quitting drinking, and whether the patient has taken comprehensive treatment and lifestyle changes. Although for some patients with severe liver damage, the liver may not be able to fully recover to a normal state, quitting drinking is still a key step to improve prognosis and quality of life. Through comprehensive management of quitting drinking, drug treatment, nutritional support and a healthy lifestyle, patients with alcoholic liver disease can restore liver health to the maximum extent and prevent further development of the disease.

Author: Shenzhen Third People's Hospital

Wang Fang, Department of Hepatitis and Cirrhosis