Aa
i have hep c have had it since i was 16 yrs old
i was told that my labs showed real low colrestrol
That was very interesting. Perhaps my use of the word "positive" was not the best choice. I think what i really wanted to know was does liver disease impact on a person's cholesterol values and the article your quoted in your response confirms that it does.
In hindsight, I see that my husband's primary care doctor (the doctor he had for ten years prior to knowing he had liver disease) missed more than a few signals of his having liver disease. His cholestoral level was about 143, yet at one point he prescribed "Lipitor" for him (approximately six - eight months prior to his finding out he had Hep C and liver disease). Lucky for my husband, we never filled that prescription.
This whole experience has shown me how important it is for everyone to take an active role in their own medical care by doing the research and asking the important questions.
Thank you again, Hector.
In hindsight, I see that my husband's primary care doctor (the doctor he had for ten years prior to knowing he had liver disease) missed more than a few signals of his having liver disease. His cholestoral level was about 143, yet at one point he prescribed "Lipitor" for him (approximately six - eight months prior to his finding out he had Hep C and liver disease). Lucky for my husband, we never filled that prescription.
This whole experience has shown me how important it is for everyone to take an active role in their own medical care by doing the research and asking the important questions.
Thank you again, Hector.
Low cholesterol it is not a positive side effect of liver disease.
http://www.livestrong.com/article/271755-conditions-causing-low-cholesterol/
"The regulation and production of cholesterol occurs in the liver. Dietary cholesterol is absorbed from the intestine and transported to the liver. As the cells require cholesterol for biological processes, the liver produces the appropriate amount and releases it into the bloodstream.
Considerations:
Since the liver is responsible for synthesizing cholesterol, total cholesterol lab values below 100 mg/dL may indicate liver dysfunction. Low cholesterol values are especially significant if the patient is not taking any cholesterol lowering medications. Low cholesterol values alone should not be used as a definitive diagnosis of liver disease. It is important that lab values are used in context with the overall clinical picture.
Significance:
In conjunction with symptoms, laboratory values such as low cholesterol may indicate the presence of liver disease."
Hector
http://www.livestrong.com/article/271755-conditions-causing-low-cholesterol/
"The regulation and production of cholesterol occurs in the liver. Dietary cholesterol is absorbed from the intestine and transported to the liver. As the cells require cholesterol for biological processes, the liver produces the appropriate amount and releases it into the bloodstream.
Considerations:
Since the liver is responsible for synthesizing cholesterol, total cholesterol lab values below 100 mg/dL may indicate liver dysfunction. Low cholesterol values are especially significant if the patient is not taking any cholesterol lowering medications. Low cholesterol values alone should not be used as a definitive diagnosis of liver disease. It is important that lab values are used in context with the overall clinical picture.
Significance:
In conjunction with symptoms, laboratory values such as low cholesterol may indicate the presence of liver disease."
Hector
Hi there and welcome to the forum! How long have you had HCV and what is your GT ?
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/18486265
"CONCLUSIONS: Based on the result of this large scale community study, HCV viremia appears to be associated with lower serum cholesterol and triglyceride levels which implies that HCV itself might play a significant role on serum lipid profile of patients with chronic HCV infection"
Other people have mentioned this before. Not always a "positive" side effect though. Post-tx my total cholesterol and LDL were fine, but my HDL was way too low, so ended up taking a statin anyway to bring the ratio back into balance.
"CONCLUSIONS: Based on the result of this large scale community study, HCV viremia appears to be associated with lower serum cholesterol and triglyceride levels which implies that HCV itself might play a significant role on serum lipid profile of patients with chronic HCV infection"
Other people have mentioned this before. Not always a "positive" side effect though. Post-tx my total cholesterol and LDL were fine, but my HDL was way too low, so ended up taking a statin anyway to bring the ratio back into balance.
Interesting observation. My husband's labs show the same thing- low cholesterol. I was wondering if this was a "positive" side effect of having hidden Hep C ivrus and liver disease because he certainly didn't watch his diet all those years. Curious if others have observed the same thing in their labs.
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