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Please tell me there's hope for my son to recover from Alcoholic Hepatitis???
My son, 35 yrs old, is in the hospital, diagnosed with Alcoholic Hepatitis and is very sick. Can the liver repair itself once it's gone this far??? I'm so scared I don't know what to do!!!
MEDICAL PROFESSIONAL
Hello and hope you are doing well.
Mam, I understand your anxiety and am glad your son has recovered so well. Just ensure to see that he takes a good diet and goes for regular checkups. Very overwhelming to see your affection for your son. To begin with you could try counseling him, must have already done that. But keep trying; even unconsciously he will imbibe your thoughts. Distract him, keep him occupied and prevent him from going to those places where he is likely to consume alcohol.
Once your son makes a resolution to stop taking alcohol get professional help from your primary care physician or a social worker and enroll him in Alcohol Anonymous, an organization aimed at fighting alcoholism.
I understand you have a herculous task ahead of you, but with your determination and affection I am sure you will overcome his alcoholism. Best of Luck!!
Hope this helped and do keep us posted.
Mam, I understand your anxiety and am glad your son has recovered so well. Just ensure to see that he takes a good diet and goes for regular checkups. Very overwhelming to see your affection for your son. To begin with you could try counseling him, must have already done that. But keep trying; even unconsciously he will imbibe your thoughts. Distract him, keep him occupied and prevent him from going to those places where he is likely to consume alcohol.
Once your son makes a resolution to stop taking alcohol get professional help from your primary care physician or a social worker and enroll him in Alcohol Anonymous, an organization aimed at fighting alcoholism.
I understand you have a herculous task ahead of you, but with your determination and affection I am sure you will overcome his alcoholism. Best of Luck!!
Hope this helped and do keep us posted.
Thanks for responding ... I kept checking every day for a while and was about to give up because I didn't think anyone was out there ...
My son was released from the hospital January 2nd. They said his pancreatitis has totally disappeared and that his bilirubin # is back in the normal range ... last check it was at 2!!! He was having his blood checked every 3 days and was on a very restricted diet for a while but now he's on a regular diet and we go back this Thursday to see the liver specialist. Doctor told us last visit that as long as he never drinks again that he should be fine :-)
My son was released from the hospital January 2nd. They said his pancreatitis has totally disappeared and that his bilirubin # is back in the normal range ... last check it was at 2!!! He was having his blood checked every 3 days and was on a very restricted diet for a while but now he's on a regular diet and we go back this Thursday to see the liver specialist. Doctor told us last visit that as long as he never drinks again that he should be fine :-)
MEDICAL PROFESSIONAL
Hello and hope you are doing well.
Understand your predicament and sympathize with you. But as described by you he is in liver failure and needs therapy. Alcohol consumption may have caused cirrhosis of liver and now he seems to be having hepatic encephalopathy. The liver which is decompromised cannot metabolize the waste products hence there is an elevation of blood ammonia levels resulting in encephalopathy. He needs constant monitoring and therapy and good to see he is improving.
Hope this helped and do keep us posted.
Understand your predicament and sympathize with you. But as described by you he is in liver failure and needs therapy. Alcohol consumption may have caused cirrhosis of liver and now he seems to be having hepatic encephalopathy. The liver which is decompromised cannot metabolize the waste products hence there is an elevation of blood ammonia levels resulting in encephalopathy. He needs constant monitoring and therapy and good to see he is improving.
Hope this helped and do keep us posted.
GOD IS SOOOO GOOD!!!!! Just got back from the hospital and my son's bilirubin# (which is what the doctors were concerned about) dropped in two days from 11 to 9!!!! Dr. said he's never seen it drop that fast before ... AND he was given food for the past 2 days even though it wasn't ordered by the doctors and should have caused the # to go UP instead of DOWN ... They said if it continues, he'll be home by the middle of next week!!! NOW I know what God was up to while I was sleeping :-) There is such power in prayer! My heart is overflowing with gratitude right now!!! (excuse me for a minute, I have to drop to my knees one more time and then go dance in the street :-)
HAPPY NEW YEAR!!!!!!
HAPPY NEW YEAR!!!!!!
Hi Hector, when I took him to the ER 11 days ago he had been trying to come off methadone for a few weeks and even though he knew he wasn't supposed to drink while taking it, was drinking a lot of vodka. He told me it was to try and sleep. I thought he was going through withdrawals and that's why he was so sick. Vomiting, shaking, hurting all over, etc., but it just kept getting worse and worse. When we got to the hospital they told me a couple more days and it would have been too late because his potassium and sodium levels were so low.
Since being admitted to the hospital they told us he has pancreatitis and severe liver damage and became jaundiced & covered in red splotches. They took him off all food and put him on IVs for hydration, vitamins, pain mgmt, etc. They're allowing him to eat now, but only liquids. The doctors are telling us that he has Alcoholic Hepatitis and
has "pickled his liver" and at this point we should pray like we've never prayed before... the doctor's actual words yesterday.
* How long has he been in the hospital? 11 days
* When will he be released? they don't know
* What is his diagnosis? Pancreatitis & Alcoholic Hepatitis
* What stage is his liver disease? Drs haven't given us a "stage"
* Did they says he has End-Stage Liver Disease and he will need a liver transplant? They haven't said "end-stage" but yes, they have said he will need a liver transplant unless God intervenes (has to be alcohol free for 6 months to be eligible for a transplant and he's only got 11 days under his belt)
We saw a specialist yesterday and he put him on Prednisone for 7 days. He said if it's going to help, we'll know within 7 days. If it does, he'll continue for 23 days but if it doesn't, it won't be continued and there's nothing else they can do. The reason he said they're trying to prednisone is to "buy some time" for his liver to hopefully start to repair itself.
His BILI # when he was admitted was 4.5 and it went up by at least a point every day until 2 days ago when it only went up a fraction. Dr. said he was hoping that meant it was going to plateau and then start going down. But the next day (yesterday) it shot up almost 2 points. That's why they decided to try the prednisone. They told us that if the liver doesn't repair itself there's nothing else to be done except pray.
Here's what I don't understand ... His liver and pancreas enzymes have steadily gone down and he looks and feels better than he has in months, his color is so much better, he's up and moving about, appetite is back, etc, yet they're telling us that his BILI# is the issue. It was 4.5 when admitted and as of yesterday morning it was at 11.
I know he's in a very bad situation, I'm just hoping and praying that he still has a fighting chance!
Since being admitted to the hospital they told us he has pancreatitis and severe liver damage and became jaundiced & covered in red splotches. They took him off all food and put him on IVs for hydration, vitamins, pain mgmt, etc. They're allowing him to eat now, but only liquids. The doctors are telling us that he has Alcoholic Hepatitis and
has "pickled his liver" and at this point we should pray like we've never prayed before... the doctor's actual words yesterday.
* How long has he been in the hospital? 11 days
* When will he be released? they don't know
* What is his diagnosis? Pancreatitis & Alcoholic Hepatitis
* What stage is his liver disease? Drs haven't given us a "stage"
* Did they says he has End-Stage Liver Disease and he will need a liver transplant? They haven't said "end-stage" but yes, they have said he will need a liver transplant unless God intervenes (has to be alcohol free for 6 months to be eligible for a transplant and he's only got 11 days under his belt)
We saw a specialist yesterday and he put him on Prednisone for 7 days. He said if it's going to help, we'll know within 7 days. If it does, he'll continue for 23 days but if it doesn't, it won't be continued and there's nothing else they can do. The reason he said they're trying to prednisone is to "buy some time" for his liver to hopefully start to repair itself.
His BILI # when he was admitted was 4.5 and it went up by at least a point every day until 2 days ago when it only went up a fraction. Dr. said he was hoping that meant it was going to plateau and then start going down. But the next day (yesterday) it shot up almost 2 points. That's why they decided to try the prednisone. They told us that if the liver doesn't repair itself there's nothing else to be done except pray.
Here's what I don't understand ... His liver and pancreas enzymes have steadily gone down and he looks and feels better than he has in months, his color is so much better, he's up and moving about, appetite is back, etc, yet they're telling us that his BILI# is the issue. It was 4.5 when admitted and as of yesterday morning it was at 11.
I know he's in a very bad situation, I'm just hoping and praying that he still has a fighting chance!
I see Hector has responded to your post with an excellent (as usual) response and has asked you some additional questions. If you post answers to Hector's questions, then maybe someone can offer you more help.
Again, I wish you and your son the very best.
Again, I wish you and your son the very best.
We do not have enough details of your son's illness, exactly how sick he is, how far he has progressed, if he has other complications or diseases, or anything other than he is in the hospital with alcoholic hepatitis. Also, we are not doctors.
That being said, the liver does try to repair itself from injury and regenerate. It can only do this if the person refrains from injuring it further with alcohol, drugs, other toxins, etc. If your son's liver is not damaged beyond repair, his liver may be able to repair itself to some extent. Many alcoholics who stop drinking do very well for the rest of their lives. Your son will definitely have to completely stop drinking or his disease will progress.
I think it would be best to have a very detailed and comprehensive talk with your son's doctor and ask him exactly how severe your son's illness is and what his chances are for repairing his liver and recovering.
Here are a couple of web sites that might help give you some information, and, if nothing else, they can give you an overview and perhaps help you to figure out what questions you should ask the doctor. You also need to figure out how best to help your son and support him if he recovers.
http://www.mayoclinic.com/health/alcoholic-hepatitis/DS00785
http://emedicine.medscape.com/article/170539-overview
There are a couple of forums that may help you more (this is a Hepatitis C forum). The Alcoholic forum and the Addiction forum may be able to offer more information and insight than those of us on this forum can.
http://www.medhelp.org/forums/Alcoholism/show/158
http://www.medhelp.org/forums/Addiction-Alcohol-Drug-Rehab/show/1232
One thing for certain, your son must stop drinking.
I wish you and your son the very best.
That being said, the liver does try to repair itself from injury and regenerate. It can only do this if the person refrains from injuring it further with alcohol, drugs, other toxins, etc. If your son's liver is not damaged beyond repair, his liver may be able to repair itself to some extent. Many alcoholics who stop drinking do very well for the rest of their lives. Your son will definitely have to completely stop drinking or his disease will progress.
I think it would be best to have a very detailed and comprehensive talk with your son's doctor and ask him exactly how severe your son's illness is and what his chances are for repairing his liver and recovering.
Here are a couple of web sites that might help give you some information, and, if nothing else, they can give you an overview and perhaps help you to figure out what questions you should ask the doctor. You also need to figure out how best to help your son and support him if he recovers.
http://www.mayoclinic.com/health/alcoholic-hepatitis/DS00785
http://emedicine.medscape.com/article/170539-overview
There are a couple of forums that may help you more (this is a Hepatitis C forum). The Alcoholic forum and the Addiction forum may be able to offer more information and insight than those of us on this forum can.
http://www.medhelp.org/forums/Alcoholism/show/158
http://www.medhelp.org/forums/Addiction-Alcohol-Drug-Rehab/show/1232
One thing for certain, your son must stop drinking.
I wish you and your son the very best.
I am sorry to hear about your son being hospitalized for being a alcoholic.
First you need to get the facts of your son's illness. Then you will know how serious it is and what you can do to help him if anything.
In order to answer your questions we need more facts and details about your son's condition.
Without knowing exactly how damaged your son's liver is, there is no way to tell if the liver will be able to repair itself.
* What symptoms or complications of Alcoholic Hepatitis was he hospitalized for?
* How long has he been in the hospital?
* When will he be released?
* What is his diagnosis?
* What stage is his liver disease?
* Did they says he has End-Stage Liver Disease and he will need a liver transplant?
Hector
First you need to get the facts of your son's illness. Then you will know how serious it is and what you can do to help him if anything.
In order to answer your questions we need more facts and details about your son's condition.
Without knowing exactly how damaged your son's liver is, there is no way to tell if the liver will be able to repair itself.
* What symptoms or complications of Alcoholic Hepatitis was he hospitalized for?
* How long has he been in the hospital?
* When will he be released?
* What is his diagnosis?
* What stage is his liver disease?
* Did they says he has End-Stage Liver Disease and he will need a liver transplant?
Hector
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