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Elevated Liver emzymes - confused and worried
Hello : )
I found this website on google so I'm looking for help. Both my ALT and AST have been high for over a year. It's been something like 56 and 119 respectively. I have been tested 3x's for hepatitis AB&C antibodies, HIV antibodies and RNA, and all the STD's tests came back negative. I finally saw a gastro two months ago and he did some other blood work to check to see if I had a autoimmune disease and that test came back normal so he ordered a ultrasound to check for fatty liver because he's 90 percent sure that's the problem.
What worries me is that this started having this problems after my last relationship with a former girlfriend. It was a short lived romance and it was also unprotected. Three months after we ended I went to my PCP for my annual exam and it showed up in my labs. I'm having the ultrasound done this upcoming Saturday but if it comes up normal, what else could be my problem and what else needs to be done to figure out what the problem is? I am overweight coming in at around 330 with not real high cholesterol and triglycerides and above average A1c test.
I wanted to know if I can eliminate hepatitis from the equation or is there a better blood test to take? I keep wondering if maybe my brief relationship with this girl caused this problem.
Thank you.
I found this website on google so I'm looking for help. Both my ALT and AST have been high for over a year. It's been something like 56 and 119 respectively. I have been tested 3x's for hepatitis AB&C antibodies, HIV antibodies and RNA, and all the STD's tests came back negative. I finally saw a gastro two months ago and he did some other blood work to check to see if I had a autoimmune disease and that test came back normal so he ordered a ultrasound to check for fatty liver because he's 90 percent sure that's the problem.
What worries me is that this started having this problems after my last relationship with a former girlfriend. It was a short lived romance and it was also unprotected. Three months after we ended I went to my PCP for my annual exam and it showed up in my labs. I'm having the ultrasound done this upcoming Saturday but if it comes up normal, what else could be my problem and what else needs to be done to figure out what the problem is? I am overweight coming in at around 330 with not real high cholesterol and triglycerides and above average A1c test.
I wanted to know if I can eliminate hepatitis from the equation or is there a better blood test to take? I keep wondering if maybe my brief relationship with this girl caused this problem.
Thank you.
Here's some info on nonalcoholic fatty liver (NAFL) & Nonalcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH) both considered “silent” liver diseases.
NASH
It resembles alcoholic liver disease, but occurs in people who drink little or no alcohol. The major feature in NASH is fat in the liver, along with inflammation and damage. Most people with NASH feel well and are not aware that they have a liver problem. Nevertheless, NASH can be severe and can lead to cirrhosis, in which the liver is permanently damaged and scarred and no longer able to work properly.
NASH affects 2 to 5 percent of Americans. An additional 10 to 20 percent of Americans have fat in their liver, but no inflammation or liver damage, a condition called “fatty liver.” Although having fat in the liver is not normal, by itself it probably causes little harm or permanent damage.
http://www.digestive.niddk.nih.gov/ddiseases/pubs/nash/
If fat is suspected based on blood test results or scans of the liver, this problem is called nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) or Nonalcoholic Steatohepatitis (NASH). If a liver biopsy is performed in this case, it will show that some people have NASH while others have simple fatty liver.
http://www.fattylivertreatment.info/fatty-liver-disease/difference-between-fatty-liver-disease-nafld-nash/
NASH
It resembles alcoholic liver disease, but occurs in people who drink little or no alcohol. The major feature in NASH is fat in the liver, along with inflammation and damage. Most people with NASH feel well and are not aware that they have a liver problem. Nevertheless, NASH can be severe and can lead to cirrhosis, in which the liver is permanently damaged and scarred and no longer able to work properly.
NASH affects 2 to 5 percent of Americans. An additional 10 to 20 percent of Americans have fat in their liver, but no inflammation or liver damage, a condition called “fatty liver.” Although having fat in the liver is not normal, by itself it probably causes little harm or permanent damage.
http://www.digestive.niddk.nih.gov/ddiseases/pubs/nash/
If fat is suspected based on blood test results or scans of the liver, this problem is called nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) or Nonalcoholic Steatohepatitis (NASH). If a liver biopsy is performed in this case, it will show that some people have NASH while others have simple fatty liver.
http://www.fattylivertreatment.info/fatty-liver-disease/difference-between-fatty-liver-disease-nafld-nash/
I don't drink and I'll continue to work with my doctor to hopefully get this corrected. Thank you can-do-man and pooh55811 for your time : )
"I have been tested 3x's for hepatitis AB&C antibodies, HIV antibodies and RNA,"
Hepatitis is not the problem, and neither is the girl.......So yes you can rule out that...................
Hepatitis is not the problem, and neither is the girl.......So yes you can rule out that...................
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It was good your doc checked for autoimmune Hep C and is checking for fatty liver.
Drinking alcohol can elevate your liver enzymes but so can several other things. Have you been checked for hemochromatosis?
http://www.liverfoundation.org/abouttheliver/info/hemochromatosis/
Here is a list of things that can cause elevated liver enzymes:
By Mayo Clinic staff
Many diseases and conditions can contribute to elevated liver enzymes. .....
More common causes of elevated liver enzymes include:
Certain prescription medications, including statin drugs used to control cholesterol
Drinking alcohol
Heart failure
Hepatitis A
Hepatitis B
Hepatitis C
Nonalcoholic fatty liver disease
Obesity
Over-the-counter pain medications, including acetaminophen (Tylenol, others)
Other causes of elevated liver enzymes may include:
Alcoholic hepatitis (liver inflammation caused by drinking alcohol)
Autoimmune hepatitis (liver inflammation caused by an autoimmune disorder)
Celiac disease (small intestine damage caused by gluten)
Cirrhosis (liver scarring)
Cytomegalovirus (CMV) infection
Dermatomyositis (inflammatory disease that causes muscle weakness and skin rash)
Epstein-Barr virus
Gallbladder inflammation (cholecystitis)
Heart attack
Hemochromatosis (too much iron stored in your body)
Hypothyroidism (underactive thyroid)
Liver cancer
Mononucleosis
Muscular dystrophy (inherited disease that causes progressive muscle weakness)
Pancreatitis (pancreas inflammation)
Polymyositis (inflammatory disease that causes muscle weakness)
Toxic hepatitis (liver inflammation caused by drugs or toxins)
Wilson's disease (too much copper stored in your body)
http://www.mayoclinic.com/health/elevated-liver-enzymes/MY00508/DSECTION=causes
Best of luck.