Cirrhosis is a late-stage result of liver disease and its complications. You may not have symptoms in the beginning stages of the disease. Common causes include alcohol abuse, hepatitis and nonalcoholic fatty liver disease. Treatment depends on the cause of cirrhosis and how much damage exists. Liver transplantation may be an option if your liver is failing.
Causes
A wide range of diseases and conditions can damage the liver and lead to cirrhosis. Some of the causes include:
- Chronic alcohol abuse
- Chronic viral hepatitis (hepatitis B, C and D)
- Fat accumulating in the liver (nonalcoholic fatty liver disease)
- Iron buildup in the body (hemochromatosis)
- Cystic fibrosis
- Copper accumulated in the liver (Wilson’s disease)
- Poorly formed bile ducts (biliary atresia)
- Alpha-1 antitrypsin deficiency
- Inherited disorders of sugar metabolism (galactosemia or glycogen storage disease)
- Genetic digestive disorder (Alagille syndrome)
- Liver disease caused by your body’s immune system (autoimmune hepatitis)
- Destruction of the bile ducts (primary biliary cirrhosis)
- Hardening and scarring of the bile ducts (primary sclerosing cholangitis
- Infection, such as syphilis or brucellosis
- Medications, including methotrexate or isoniazid
Symptoms
Cirrhosis often has no signs or symptoms until liver damage is extensive. When signs and symptoms do occur, they may include:
- Fatigue
- Easily bleeding or bruising
- Loss of appetite
- Nausea
- Swelling in your legs, feet or ankles (edema)
- Weight loss
- Itchy skin
- Yellow discoloration in the skin and eyes (jaundice)
- Fluid accumulation in your abdomen (ascites)
- Spiderlike blood vessels on your skin
- Redness in the palms of the hands
- For women, absent or loss of periods not related to menopause
- For men, loss of sex drive, breast enlargement (gynecomastia) or testicular atrophy
- Confusion, drowsiness and slurred speech (hepatic encephalopathy)