Bacterial Infection and Cirrhosis

[couchpotato]

Has anyone out there ever had a bacterial infection compounded by Cirrhosis??? My husband is having a very difficult time fighting this and I am getting VERY concerned. Mike Simmon....this ever happen to you pre-transplant? Thanks for any information.  Couch

[tina-b]

There was another man in the same hospital room when my husband way so sick too. Didn't bother me one bit. I just pulled the curtain. Turned out the guy was very happy to have someone physically go get a nurse because, they kept turning off his call light and ignoring him so they could play grab ass with the doctors. As luck would have it, his son and my son became classmates for a couple of years. I would just tell the nurses what I expected and if they gave me any ****, I told them to go ahead and call the supervisor now so I would have time to talk to administration before they went home for the day. You can believe I had administration on that floor and I had their full attention. Just keep in mind, if you want something for your husband after hours and they give you any ****, the is ALWAYS an ER doctor down stairs to read x-rays, blood test or order extra meds, and you can INSIST they call your husbands doctor at home, anytime day or night. If they can't reach his doctor, there is a doctor they can call somewhere. Don't get me wrong, I have a family FULL of RN's. I just want you to understand that hospitals and doctors kill in excess of 100,000 people every year. That is not an exaggeration, it is a known fact. So just please keep a close eye on things. Oh ya, you are right, you would get more rest sleeping there with him than at home right now. About the temper, you should make the staff familiar with it. They pay closer attention to people with tempers than they do the meek and mild. I

[mikesimon]

Although ascites is common with cirrhosis I don't know if it is ALWAYS present in end stage liver disease. My situation was not typical because during a routine yearly scan of my liver a lesion was observed that they suspected was cancer. So they bumped me up the list and I was transplanted within 1 month. The pathology showed no cancer but a very deteriorated liver. I would think with the new MELD score system that in the absence of suspected cancer or some other extenuating circumstance most transplant patients would likely have ascites by the time they got a liver. That is purely speculation and I have no facts or research to back it up. It just makes sense. Ascites itself is not factored into the MELD score and has no significance in ascertaining who gets a liver. The following quote is from: http://www.unos.org/ site but when I copy the link it won't open - I don't know why that is.
"Several medical conditions that had been considered in the prior liver allocation system, such as ascites and encephalopathy, are not included in the MELD system. This is because these factors have been tested in the MELD formula and did not add to the MELD score

[cuteus]

If I feel helpless just reading about it, I can only imagine the desperation you must be feeling, you must be close to the breaking point in patience.

I wish you could secretely install a wireless camera and connect into  it from a wireless network, so you can watch him from work. My BF watches his house from his pc at work through his wireless server.

I am praying for his recovery and safety any time I think of you two.

[honey1616]

Couch,,,,Bless your heart!  I'm thinking that black cloud that is hanging over couch and her hubby,,,Needs to move and clear out!  I just don't know what to say because I know so well how worried you are about your husband.  Please keep us posted on his condition and you both are in my prayers!!

[mikesimon]

Yes, ascites is the name for the accumulation of fluid in the abdomen. It can often be diagnosed just by looking at and/or palpating the abdomen and is characteristic of liver disease. I would think it is possible that he has had it to a lessor extent for a while but I don't know. Like everything else, you don't have it until you do. As to whether it will stay I have no idea. My experience with edema was that it did subside and this was before my transplant. One day I noticed it and saw my doctor and a few weeks later it wasn't nearly as pronounced. With ascites they can drain the abdominal cavity which does give immediate relief but the procedure is no picnic from what I have been told. I never had the procedure so I can't say first hand. As to whether the infection is "beating up his liver" I wouldn't think it could be good for it but as to the causal relationship I just don't know. I think that once the infection is resolved he may return to the condition he was in prior to this infection but really I don't know that. I would hope that is the case. As to the inevitability of transplantation, have you been told that by his doctor? Again I apologize for being so ignorant about his condition but I've been preoccupied as of late. I do feel badly about the situation and hope it improves soon. I only wish I could be more help to you. Mike

[couchpotato]

Thankyou so much for your postings. My mind is racing a 100 mph an hour, hope my fingers can keep up and give you an idea what is happening. I took hubby into emer. last Thurs. and he was dx ar having a bacterial infection in his bloodstream. Many blood tests, blood cultures and an ultrasound (of which showed no ascites and no new problem with liver). After having a normal temp. for 24 hours I brought him home Wed. but had to take him back in yesterday as temp was 102. His tummy was starting to swell abit and docs said probably gas but it is continuing and I notice he has some edema as well in his ankles. Another ultrasound yesterday now shows fluid in abdomon. He is on IV antibiotics again and we are still waiting results on lab tests. I can't seem to find an answer on the net as to the fluid. Is ascites just a common name for fluid buildup? Can it appear in under a week (he's never had it before)? And is it here to stay till the inevitable transplant? I have found that bacteria infection is harder to clear with cirrhossis but I wonder if it is beating up his liver?

Thanks for your postings...Travelmom I have often read your postings about your daughter, my heart goes out to you, like you wouldn't believe. Please be strong.  Couch

[tina-b]

I'm sorry about your husband being sick. My husband was deathly sick with gallbladder infection that moved to his blood stream before we found out he had hep c. He was in ICU with 104.0 temp for hours before the surgery to remove the gallbladder. Fever went down and came back up again and he had pneumonia. If at all possible, can you stay at the hospital with him? I mean the hospital can't stop you and nobody is going to look out for him better than you. The hospital may try to discourage it, but just tell them you are staying and to bring you a cot, don't ask them. Asking will allow them to respond with an answer instead of action. You need action. My husband had/has cirrhosis and is 20/48 today. He did 24/24 last year and relapsed. It took him a good long while to recover from that bout of infection. They kept giving him all these new antibiotics and finally we told them we wanted penicillin and that did the trick. I don

[couchpotato]

Thanks for the information Mike, this is just so confusing to me. Seems the more info I get, the more messed up it is in my head. My husband has been to the transplant docs 3 times in as many years for evaluation. Last year his Pugh score was 6 but we have not received the results of this years visit as of yet. He is not on a list but they are monitoring him. It's my understanding that the accumulation of ascites will now drive his points up, increasing his stage of Cirrhosis, and moving him closer to the list. I was also under the impression that ascites always happened but then you wrote that you never had it and you have received liver? I don't know, I just wish I could have finished my tx before the sh*t hit the fan and maybe I could concentrate more on what's going on and not be so bloody exhausted! Anyway, thanks again Mike.

Honey.... We'll get through it.  One day at a time.

Tina... while it is a good idea, and I'd probably rest better, he is sharing the room with another man, and there is absolutely no room for me. I spend all time that I am not working there and keeping an eagle eye on the help. I don't trust doctors either, I must watch my temper. Thanks for the suggestion.

[LvdByGod]

do you think they are related or more difficult to deal with the infection seeing that he also has cirrhosis? does it make it harder to get rid of the infection? do you need to watch what meds you need for the infection too?

i have been concerned about your hubby since i heard he was in the hospital...i surely hope he can get rid of this soon...

when i first went on tx i had a major lung infection...coughing up blood and all....turned out to be very close to pnuemonia (sp)...i think it was but dr never tested it...i had to go on two runs of antibiotics...i figured it was from the tx... i still have a cough at times but, i figure when tx ends so will this little annoyance.

...but, your husband sounds so much more serious than that...is the infection still hanging arround...keep an eye on it...like i said i never got rid of it all the way at first and needed to do another round of pills...i was on zithromiacin...the z pack!!!

if it helps you to know i am bridging fibrosis early cirrhosis...

i'll be prayiing for your husband and i surely hope he gets well soon...

[mikesimon]

No, I never did have a problem with bacterial infections but cirrhosis does carry the risk of infection. There are many articles on this and if you can't locate them I will find and post them for you - just let me know. I don't recall your husband's condition insofar as symptoms are concerned. I apologize for that but my brain is a little crowded lately. Is ascites a problem? If so,this can lead to infection as you'll see when you read up a bit. I imagine he is being treated aggressively for this condition - at least I would hope that he is. Let me know if I can do anything. Good luck. Mike

[TravelGrl]

Amanda has cirrhosis and has never experienced this...What did your doctor say? Hope he feels better soon!
Jodi