Itching and being cold and not sweating

[TonyParsons]

Hi. Can anyone recommend what can be done with being very itchy on your back. Much worse when going to bed an this affects my sleeping pattern. Also what can be done about not sweating when excercising and being cold.

Many thanks

Tony

[Bolly]

It might depend on the cause of the itching. As you are posting on the British Liver Trust forum i assume you have a diagnosis of liver disease?

If you tell us how damaged your liver is, what the cause of the damage is, how long you have been itching, what your bilirubin levels are, if you have already consulted doctors about the itching in the past, or any home remedies you have already tried but have not worked............ we might be able to offer some tips!

[TonyParsons in reply to Bolly]

Hi. It all appears to been caused by an overdose of chemo after I had bowel cancer. My condition is that I have had portal hyper tension with variceal haemorrhage which were banded and they have gone, ascities for which I am taking Spironolactone and furosemide . I now have a blood clot to the liver and I am on warfarin. I have liver cirrhosis.

No idea what my bilirubin levels are but I will ask!

I don't drink alcohol or use salt and eat what l think is a good diet having moved from a meat & two veg person to more fish chicken and veg. I try to keep away from fried foods and processed foods.

Any tips would be appreciated

Thanks

Tony

[Bolly in reply to TonyParsons]

Sounds like you have two separate issues. One is the overdose of chemo for the cancer. The second is cirrhosis of the liver. Are you saying the chemo caused the cirrhosis, or did the docs discover you had advanced liver damage when they operated on your bowel.

[TonyParsons]

I was not aware of any liver problem at the time of my bowel op. It is suggested that I reacted to the chemo which kicked off all of these things over the years . It may be that liver condition has nothing to do with these side effects. I saw the consultant today and the good news is that everything is looking OK and I will see him in six months time. Have to live with the other bits and pieces.

[Bolly]

I'm guessing what they mean is the liver is "stable" but you still have decompensated cirrhosis which is the cause of the ascites etc and why you need the diuretics and other medications. Itching is another symptom of decompensated liver disease so need discussing with your liver specialist. There is a medication called Ursodeoxycholic acid that doctors can prescribe if it's a problem with your bile salts. Maybe your GP could test your bilirubin level for you?