Is the surface of the liver smooth in the early stages of cirrhosis?

Written by Wu Hai Wu

Gastroenterology

Updated on January 09, 2025

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In the early stages of cirrhosis, it is not necessarily the case that the liver surface is very smooth; in patients with early cirrhosis, the liver surface can be uneven.

Patients in the early stages of cirrhosis also need serious attention. They should undergo regular follow-up examinations, and it is important to identify the cause of the early cirrhosis. Based on different causes, appropriate treatment measures should be taken. For example, if the early cirrhosis is caused by chronic hepatitis B virus, antiviral treatment should be initiated as soon as possible. If it is due to alcohol, leading to early alcoholic cirrhosis, then it is crucial to quit drinking actively, and liver-protective treatments are also needed.

Other Voices

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Written by Li Hu Chen

Imaging Center

57sec

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Can cirrhosis be detected by ultrasound B?

If there are signs of hardening in the liver, which we call cirrhosis, an ultrasound, specifically a hepatobiliary ultrasound, can detect it. Especially in the middle and late stages, cirrhosis has some characteristic features on an ultrasound. First, one can observe the size of the liver. By the middle and late stages, the liver usually shrinks—a slight enlargement may occur early on, but it generally progressively diminishes. Additionally, the texture of the liver becomes harder, and through the ultrasound, the texture appears uneven with a bumpy feeling, or in other words, there can be seen a diffuse and uneven echo. However, for early-stage cirrhosis, a standard ultrasound may not be as sensitive. Nowadays, there are digital liver ultrasounds specifically designed to measure the degree of liver hardness, which provide objective data to help diagnose more sensitively and objectively. This method can definitely detect the condition.

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Written by Wu Hai Wu

Gastroenterology

38sec

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Will the platelet count be low in the early stages of cirrhosis?

The early stage of cirrhosis does not cause a decrease in platelets. Patients in the early stages of cirrhosis often have no obvious symptoms and may only exhibit fatigue, weight loss, jaundice, etc. However, once a patient with cirrhosis develops splenic hyperfunction, it can easily lead to a decrease in platelets, where the platelet count may drop to 100,000 per microliter. In such cases, it might be necessary to perform procedures like splenic embolization or splenectomy for antimicrobial treatment, and it is also important to prevent other complications of cirrhosis, such as esophageal and gastric varices, etc.

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Written by Wu Hai Wu

Gastroenterology

50sec

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How long does it take to see the effects of Chinese medicine in the early stages of cirrhosis?

As for how long it takes to see the effects of traditional Chinese medicine in the early stages of cirrhosis, it depends on the specific cause of the disease. Depending on different causes, the time to see effects may vary. For instance, if it is early-stage alcoholic cirrhosis or drug-induced early-stage cirrhosis, after abstaining from alcohol and stopping the use of some liver-damaging medications, then supplementing with traditional Chinese medicine treatment, effects can be seen quite quickly. If it is caused by viral hepatitis and has not undergone standard antiviral treatment, relying solely on oral intake of traditional Chinese medicine, it might take a relatively long time to see some effects. Furthermore, the effects will be better after undergoing antiviral treatment.

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Written by Li Qiang

Intensive Care Unit

1min 5sec

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Which is more serious, liver failure or cirrhosis?

Liver failure refers to a functional impairment of the liver, which could be acute or chronic damage. For instance, it could be the end stage of chronic liver disease, or an acute condition such as hepatitis, or another acute liver lesion. Other common lesions may also cause a sudden abnormality in liver function, resulting in severe liver dysfunction. At this point, liver cirrhosis is a common cause of liver failure. For example, in the middle and late stages of liver cirrhosis, liver function is completely decompensated, meaning the liver can no longer maintain its basic normal functions, leading to liver failure. Therefore, liver failure is one of the major consequences of liver cirrhosis, but the two are distinct. Liver failure can also be caused by other reasons not related to cirrhosis. For example, acute ischemia in the liver, such as in shock patients, can lead to liver ischemia and subsequently liver failure. Liver cirrhosis is just one of the common causes thereof.

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Written by Yuan Lin Yan

Infectious Disease

1min 12sec

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Is hepatitis B with liver cirrhosis severe?

Hepatitis B-related cirrhosis is a form of liver cirrhosis caused by the hepatitis B virus, and it is more severe than chronic hepatitis B. However, cirrhosis can be categorized into compensated cirrhosis and decompensated cirrhosis. Decompensated cirrhosis refers to the advanced stages of cirrhosis, characterized by significant hardening of the liver, and complications such as ascites, hepatic encephalopathy, and gastrointestinal bleeding may occur. This type of cirrhosis is severe and has a high mortality rate, and even timely antiviral therapy against hepatitis B cannot effectively delay the progression of the disease. Compensated cirrhosis refers to the early stages of cirrhosis, where complications like ascites, hepatic encephalopathy, and gastrointestinal bleeding are not present, making this type of cirrhosis comparatively less severe. With timely antiviral therapy against hepatitis B, the progression of cirrhosis can be delayed.