Fibrescan 75kpa :-(

[acjb007]

My first scan was a year ago and scored a shocking 75kpa. My doctor was hopeful my second scan today would show promising results but it scored the same. All they can do is monitor me closely with blood testsand scans. I was just wondering if anyone had such a bad score as mine?

[cityman62]

That's,I'm sure,a frightening place to be,have you been told,tested for reasons behind this score by your G.P./hospital etc?,best.

[acjb007 in reply to cityman62]

It's through alcohol .

[Joleigh]

Hi yes my husband had a score of 64 that was two years ago. Never had another test. It means that the liver is very stiff. I have read here that people have got it down though.

[acjb007 in reply to Joleigh]

How is your husbands health now?

[Joleigh in reply to acjb007]

He didn't drink for 20 months until 2 beers last month. He has hep c too so we have an ultrasound every 6 months. Next on Monday. He has had ascites, HE, varices banding. Very tired too. But his blood tests did stabilse as soon as he stopped drinking. It is being managed but we were told it would not get better as a lot of damage. Sorry, but every case is different. This is ours. A good liver specialist is the best to talk to. Take care!

[dooley1]

Hi that's very scary having a score so high but it is possible to reduce that score with a good diet and obviously no alcohol at all. I had a scare last year mine was 65 but just had a retest, I was so scared that there would be no change but it had come down to 40. So take heart and keep plugging away, have you had any dietary advice? because this makes a bigger difference than you'd think! Although I can't advise you about any product I take a very good Milk Thistle and am convinced it's helped me. Good luck and try and keep positive, I know it's very difficult to do but there is definitely light at the end of the tunnel.

[Kazsteve in reply to dooley1]

My blood test showed liver function ok but my scan today showed34.5. I have not drink alcohol for nearly 3 years. I am waiting to hear from my GP to discuss but wondered how well I was doing?

[Russelka2 in reply to dooley1]

What Milk Thistle brand do you take?

[Hidden in reply to Russelka2]

Dont take milk thistle. Firstly it wont help and secondly its possible it can worsen yout situation. Unless a doctor tells you otherwise all supplements of any sort are a no no for liver disease. It causes more stress to the liver. The liver doesn't need detoxing. It does that on its own.

[Hidden]

Hiya, am sorry that your score has stayed the same but it could improve. In November my Fibroscan result was the same at 75. I stopped drinking straight away and in the one 6 months later it had fallen to 19.8. My hepatologist said the 75 readings are usually distorted because of the amount of inflammation and that can take a long time to subside. I take milk thistle ...I know there is no definitive proof that it works but I really do think that it because there hasn't been a large enough study done...but if you can get some, it won't do any harm. Plus no alcohol obviously and as healthy a diet as you can, fingers crossed for you, take care

[briccolone in reply to Hidden]

your comment about slewed results makes sense to me-I reckon i have low level alcoholic hepaptitis caused by drinking on a fatty liver. Have hardly touched a drop in months-it's taking quite a while for things to improve

[Hidden in reply to briccolone]

You have to just stop completely really however difficult that is ! Alcohol is just pure poison and to a damaged liver its even worse ...good luck x

[acjb007]

I haven't drank in 3 years. I take milk thistle and also swear it's a miracle. I'm vegetarian and eat fairly healthy however my new job is in a posh food store and I get free food at the end of each shift. Cakes and bread mostly. I avoid lots of dairy but I'm eating way too much sugar. I'm around 3 stone overweight. Im very active and drink lots of water and avoid fizzy sugary drinks. Do like a coffee or tea. Also avoid fruit juice. I have a high fibre diet too. Any tis are much appreciated.

[briccolone in reply to acjb007]

try and stay away from the cakes if you can-too much refined food will not help. I tried the 5:2 diet a couple of years ago and lost 10kgs in 6 weeks-worked wonders with my digestive system. Wish I'd stayed on it...

[Amena1610 in reply to acjb007]

Should we avoid all fruit juice??

[briccolone in reply to Amena1610]

I wouldn't avoid it completely but better by far not to juice-reduces sugar intake-eat the whole fruit instead

[cityman62]

I have to say,I'm (extremely) dubious about supplements,herbal curers,helpers etc.Milk tree thistle is,I suppose,one of the more reputable ones.But no scientific proof-at all.If there's an underlying cause you can stop-stop.If m.t.thistle is such a 'miracle'Why hasn't your fibroscan result dropped dramatically for instance!?You could end up taking loads of these herbal remedies on a daily basis-and paying loads to boot+all having to be processed by your poor old liver and end up making things worse-I reckon.Its like being told by your G.P.-your daily cake eating habit is slowly wrecking your heart,and finding A Dr furtlewanger of Illinois medical facility almost guarantees that taking 6 of his special green smarties daily will sort it!Hmmm.

[Hidden in reply to cityman62]

My Fibroscan went from 75 in November 2012 to 19.8 six months later and has continued to drop through 16.5, 11.2 and two years later was 8.8. I had obviously stopped drinking so this may be the only reason but I still don't think the Milk Thistle hurts at all. My diet is 80% healthy and from a 75 reading with a diagnosis of cirrhosis, you can see that something has been working ! x

[briccolone in reply to Hidden]

that's very encouraging -well done

[Jmusic3 in reply to Hidden]

Hi everyone. I'm Very new to this. I have recently had a fibroscan test and the result was 11.8. The reason for the test was that my ALT had risen four points to 5.2. It had always been around the 4.7 mark. AST normal at 24. I had been diagnosed with mild fatty liver in the past. How bad is my fibroscan result? I did an nafld fibroscore test and it came back at -33.338 (unlikely to have any fibrosis). All other LFT's are normal. I had a CT scan 2 years ago which stated my liver was clear. I had an abdominal MRI last month which showed normal liver, spleen and no ascitis. I've no symptoms apart from slight, occasional pain on my left side. It seems the only adverse result was my fibroscan which was only done once. Oh....I did alcohol binge on the 4 days before my test. Would this have caused inflammation that could have altered the result?

Johnny D

[Hidden in reply to Hidden]

So going from 75kpa to 8.8 .. are they now saying the cirrhosis is gone?

[Brett11 in reply to Hidden]

Cirrhosis never goes. It might hide for a while but it is always there somewhere.

[cityman62]

Not to mention all the other major organs in your body suddenly going-Whoaw!What's with the new 6 daily camel dung tablets and 3 pints of green tea regime?

[cityman62]

Positive and negative thoughts.75 kpa is deeply worryingly-of course.But,do bear in mind,loads of things will skew your score-usually upwards,being overweight/diabetes type2/cardiac issues,inflammation of the liver etc.So what it scores ain't necessarily what it it is.Plus the test measures stiffness-not cirrhosis-but its an indicator-for sure.Cakes and suger ARE naughty-sigh.In many ways,interim scores are slightly irrelevant-under 7=normal/over 7=at least some degree of fibrosis,12.5 and up=some degree of cirrhosis. So Frankly,as I understand it hugging yourself because your score is now 25 instead of 35 or whatever,isn't the be all and end all,but obviously a long term downward trend is what you want to see.Take care of yourself-and DONT despair.

[acjb007]

I believe milk thistle is a miracle herb due to the amount of wine and vodka I've drank over many years and being close to death yet still my liver is functional and keeping me alive

[cityman62 in reply to acjb007]

I like your style! X

[briccolone in reply to acjb007]

although there's scepticism here about milk thistle-its not the case in Italy where it is widely prescibed-in fact the artichoke family in general which abounds in the Italian diet is a plus-anyway-if nothing else it tastes good...

[cityman62 in reply to briccolone]

Your right,it does taste good,then again,Jerusalem artichokes will usually clear a room/alienate your near and dearest,and find yourself the last person in the room

[briccolone in reply to cityman62]

jerusalem artichokes-great soup but bad for the (local) environment-- -actually they're not real artichokes so not much good for your liver either..

[CaptM]

If you wish to improve liver test results (and liver function) then not only is cutting out alcohol completely required, avoid ANY foods containing SUCROSE! Avoid honey like the plague.

You need to clean the diet up 100% to healthy, non processed and sucrose free. Don't eat ANY junk food.

If you continue to do so then the liver will NOT improve quickly, if at all, but given half a chance you may be able to regain better function.

No harm in taking milk thistle either

[acjb007]

I haven't drunk in over 3 years. What's the deal with avoiding honey?

[cityman62]

Ok,just for balance here, how many liver consultants anyone has spoken to has strongly urged you to take milk thistle-immediately,or indeed at all?

[acjb007 in reply to cityman62]

None. But they haven't told me not to take it. I don't want to get into an argument over milk thistle. I believe it's helped so what's the harm.

[briccolone in reply to acjb007]

more research required but I agree if you think its helped that's fine

[O2liveforhim]

I'm sorry that your score has not changed, I am currently taking Hepassure which is supposed to lower fibrosis.

All of these posts with high fibroscan scores and living fairly normally accompanied with several that are dropping over time are very encouraging though.

I was admitted to the hospital in August 2015, I was yellow and had flu like symptoms. All of my scores were through the roof with a bilirubin over 26. My ultrasound is normal outside of an enlarged liver and spleen. I was only in for two days on IVs of B-1 and folic acid and discharged diagnosed with cirrhosis and esophageal varices none of which were bleeding or have bled. I may or may not have had acites diagnosed but I did not have anything drained and have not had them since I have been discharged.

I now eat extremely healthy and exercise regularly and have lost nearly 40 pounds. ( too fast I know but it is plateauing)

I have limited healthcare and have seen nothing but the general practitioner, and a GI that praises me quiting drinking and just tells me to watch my diet ( low sodium) and that he'll talk to me every 6 months.

To much homework on the Internet has me petrified, so I found a place that does fibroscans and had one done. 27 was the result..

L4, ugghh.

Part of me wishes I hadn't even done that, as now I'm waiting for the other shoe to drop... at least that score did get me a ticket to one of the finest hospitals around with a full facility ( appointment is this coming Tuesday) but the truth is all of my bloods are normal now and I have more energy than I ever have, I sleep great( outside of worry) I have a good appetite and have had no other symptoms since quitting drinking a week before the hospitalization. 175 days ago.

My hope is that when I get a whole new series of tests from this liver center that chances are I will have cirrhosis but the fibrosis will gradually start coming down and I can continue to lead a relatively healthy life with my abstinence, strict diet an exercise routine...

( while keeping my eyes out for the advances being made in scar tissue reversal at many of the trials going on)

Or even better yet maybe all those symptoms were caused by an extreme case of alcoholic hepatitis and there is limited or no cirrhosis at all.

( that part is doubtful with the presence of varices and the high Fibroscan score, but you never know)

I will keep you posted, and let you know how my next Fibroscan is and see if Hepassure ( it's basically g.r.a.s. Medical food in capsule form) would be something I recommend or not. The people that I got it from believe strongly that it lowers fibrosis consistently.

God Bless,

Joe

[matt137]

I've read quite a lot about different countries take on milk thistle. Like someone said above, some health systems actively promote it.

I have been warned on the type though due to the fillers that some herbal companies use.

Has anyone been told of a reputable supplier in the UK? Or is it the old faithful Holland and Barratt?

Matt

[briccolone in reply to matt137]

some people swear by it =certainly in Italy artichoke and/ot thistle derivatives are used widely as liver "cures". Globe artchokes may be a better bet as contains excellent liver friendly vitamins

[briccolone]

interesting post keep up the good work

[O2liveforhim in reply to briccolone]

I just went in for an updated fibroscan after being on the Heppasure for a little over 90 days. I am now at a 19.2.  

Of course that's another three months of sobriety but these supplements must be doing something to drop that much.

[briccolone in reply to O2liveforhim]

that's very interesting-good for you.  onwards & downwards (the fibroscan score I mean)

best

[O2liveforhim in reply to briccolone]

6/10/16

13.3 kPa

[Russelka2]

Mine was 75. Don’t know how to feel about that except scared. How are you doing now?

[Nitikumari]

My husband did fibroscan test last month his score was 75kpa I am very scared. Is there any possibility to fall down the fibroscan score after few months