lft

[ronniepit]

I have just been diagnosed with hepatitis c by other than my usual doctor. my usual doctor says that because my LFT is ok I should not worry?

[orphanedhawk]

I agree with the above posts, you should get checked. However, you may be one of the lucky ones who have HCV and no damage. I have a friend like that.
Don't worry but do see a GI or heptologist.

[chuckles333]

A Hepatologist will conduct a battery of blood tests that will check for a lot of things your GP wouldn't even know about. That along with a specialized ultra-sound will give a clearer picture of how your liver looks. The hepatologist might even decide that a biopsy is not required at this time or if it is she will have a clearer idea of were to stick the needle to get the best possible sample for examination. By all means don't go with your GP's conclusions. He is not fully versed in this field.

[nygirl7]

One point is although they are stable now you cannot be sure how they have been throughout all of the time that you have had hepc.  For instance  there were years I was partying that they were probably through the roof - then years that I was sober and they proobably went down drastically because I was taking better care of myself (just an example).

While lft's are a useful tool it is very true that they certainly are not the biggest piece of the puzzle.  If you are concerned about how advanced your liver disease is you should have a biopsy. While it sounds dreadful it's not painful - it's just the anxiety of not believing that it's not going to hurt that makes you crazy and it's time consuming.

But then you will have a much more clear answer.

I would advise that you find a doctor that is a specialist who understands hep. Primary care doctors really don't  know anything about it in most cases...although they sure can act like they do!

[newleaf09]

I totally agree with Bill; was just reading something about large numbers of patients with advanced liver disease and normal liver enzymes.  There is a lot of other bloodwork that a more specialized doctor will look at, like alkaline phosphate levels, Alpha fetoprotein levels, platelets, bilirubin, albumin and other things that indicate potential liver damage going on.  Go to the next step before putting this one to bed.

[Bill1954]

Oh my, no; that’s incorrect. A good number of HCV patients will progress into and through this disease with normal liver enzymes. Ask for a referral to a qualified GI doctor or hepatologist for more accurate and thorough management. It’s very possible to have normal ALT/AST and have advanced scarring or fibrosis of the liver. Unfortunately, primary care physicians aren’t always up to speed on this disease.

Sorry to hear of your diagnosis; have you been genotyped or biopsied yet?

Bill