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Recognize And Understand Liver Pain By Its Symptoms

What is liver pain?

Liver pain can take the form of dull pain, tenderness, or cramping on the right side of the body below the rib cage that can be brought on by a cough or by deep breaths. In some cases, severe pain in the liver can make patients feel like their livers are going to burst and the pain is bad enough to keep them from going on with their daily tasks.

Possible Causes of Liver Pain

Liver pain should not be ignored because it can be caused by a number of illnesses, some of which are very serious such as liver cirrhosis and hepatitis. Other possible causes include fatty liver, autoimmune diseases and other illnesses that cause liver impairment or inflammation. Aside from problems in the liver itself, pain in the liver can also be caused by disorders in other organs. The most common ones causing pain are problems in the biliary tract, the gallbladder and in the blood vessels.

Biliary colic is one of the most common biliary tract disorders that cause pain in the liver. This kind of liver pain tends to come suddenly and cause several hours of discomfort before it subsides. It is typically caused by eating a large fat-rich meal, which causes cholesterol-overload. In addition, pain in the liver can also be caused by a blockage or an inflammation in the bile duct or by an unhealthy gallbladder. Other causes include liver cysts and liver abscess.

To diagnose the cause of liver pain, other symptoms should be carefully noted. Some of these liver pain symptoms are fatigue, constipation, weight loss, breathing difficulty, nausea, vomiting, swollen testes, a swollen abdomen, diarrhea, jaundice, and radiating shoulder pain.

Liver Pain Relief

Available in prescription and over-the-counter formulations, nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) are very effective for treating liver pain. It is never a good idea to self-medicate though because treating the symptoms might disguise the progression of a serious disease that is causing the pain. The wisest step would be to see a doctor and get an accurate diagnosis of the underlying illness.

Any treatment for liver pain should also be accompanied by making healthy lifestyle choices that will help keep the pain from returning. These include avoiding alcohol, drinking a minimum of eight glasses of water a day, increasing fruit and vegetable intake and taking whole-food supplements such as vitamins A, B1 and K. These recommendations are also great for preventing the problem connected to liver pain so anybody who wants a healthy liver would do well to implement these changes.

Symptoms And Causes Of Liver Pain

Diagnosing any symptoms a patient may be experiencing, is always the first step in treating all medical conditions especially for liver pain. Many people often confuse pain in the liver with other medical abdomen conditions. This may be because of the fact that the symptoms from liver pain will often vary in each patient.

Pains in the abdomen are easily confused with liver pain, unless the pain is located in the upper right region of the abdomen just under the ribs. If, the patient is experiencing pain in the liver, swelling and inflammation can often be felt in the area, as well. There are many other things that can cause pain in the same area such as intestinal viruses, gallstones, and many other disorders. Because the pain in the liver could be due to several serious medical conditions, visiting your family doctor is very important in order to determine cause and receive proper treatment.

Causes Of Pain In The Liver (is it liver pain if you feel it?):

*chronic hepatitis

*fatty liver disease

*abscess of the liver

*liver cancer

*gallstones

*gastritis

*pneumonia in the right lung

*irritable bowel syndrome

Symptoms Associated With Liver Pain:

*Most of the pain is felt in the under the right rib cage, and swelling or inflammation of the area is usually felt.

*People with liver pain will often develop a yellowish pigment to their skin.

*Many rashes and blemishes that cause severe itching are often seen on the skin.

*Patients with liver pain can develop abnormal, bad breath and excessive sweating.

*Excessive fatigue feelings, breathing problems, and coughing are also signs of liver pain.

*The eyes begin to show signs of swelling, yellow, and develop dark circles in people with pain in the liver.

What to do when you feel liver pain?

Liver pain can become life-threatening if left untreated. Patients with a liver disorder should always be closely monitored by a health care provider and be properly treated in a timely manner. If, you have experience severe confusion, rapid heartbeat or chest pains, begin running a high temperature, have difficulty breathing, or begin to vomit blood, you should seek emergency medical care or dial 911.

Any medical problem that causes pain in the liver should never be ignored in order to prevent future illnesses from developing or becoming worse. Any liver pain can be very painful and often scarey. However, by visiting you health care provider early and having your liver pain related symptoms properly diagnosed, your doctor will be able to start you on the right treatment plan and get you back to feeling like yourself again, without pain.