The most prevalent form of liver disease in the United States of America is the Non-alcoholic fatty liver disease, which is caused by the unhealthy deposition of fat in one’s liver. Major complications can be averted if it is detected and treated in the early stages but the problem is that getting a proper diagnosis is not a very easy task.
How Does Fat Cause Liver Damage?
Some of you may be wondering how fat can lead to liver damage in some people. You may be surprised to know for most of us, the extra unhealthy fat accumulates in the liver but may not really result in any liver damage. However, statistics show that in approximately one in twenty people, superfluous liver fat is capable of triggering liver inflammation that is chronic in nature. The name of this condition is NASH or Non-alcoholic Steatohepatitis, where ‘steato’ means “of or relating to fat” and ‘hepatitis’ refers to “inflammation of the liver.”
Similar to other liver ailments and diseases, like liver disease caused due to excessive alcohol consumption or viral hepatitis, liver inflammation that is chronic in nature is capable of causing severe damage, which can lead to scarring of the liver, otherwise known as fibrosis. No matter what the cause is when fibrosis gets extremely severe, it reaches a stage called cirrhosis of the liver. Cirrhosis is extremely dangerous as it can put patients at the risk of liver cancer or total failure of the liver, and the only way to save the life of such a person would be getting a liver transplant.
Diagnosing Fatty Liver Disease
The trick to avoiding the complications of Non-alcoholic Steatohepatitis or NASH, as it is more commonly called, is to detect it while it is still in its early stages and treat it properly, so as to save the liver before it has to endure any kind of serious damage. However, catching it early is no easy task as people rarely ever display symptoms of their liver problem. This is why you must be proactive and consult a doctor about your risk of having Non-alcoholic Steatohepatitis (NASH) if you are or have recently been diagnosed with having any or all the symptoms of metabolic syndrome.
Now, the best and most effective way to determine whether or not a person has NASH is by getting a liver biopsy done. However, you can avoid having to get liver biopsies needlessly, by simply getting imaging tests and blood tests done to figure out how much at risk you are for NASH. For those who are not comfortable with unnecessary invasive tests, getting liver elastography is an excellent idea. Elastography is a specialized ultrasound that can help you figure out the extent of your liver scarring and damage. However, having NASH shouldn’t be the catalyst that pushes you to start leading a healthy and balanced life. In fact, you should make daily exercise and eating healthy a part of your lifestyle so as to never have such problems in the first place. You should invest in your life to yield good returns.
Do you want to know if you are at risk of NASH? Need to get a liver biopsy done? We’re your people. Visit us at Today Clinic and get yourself a better tomorrow! At Today Clinic in Texas and Oklahoma, you can visit a top-rated provider when it fits into your schedule.