Ultrasound all clear

[patrick62869]

Hi all,

So i had an abdominal ultrasound done yesterday and my doctor just rang me this morning with the results - he said there is nothing to suggest any damage whatsoever, not even early stage fatty liver - and that everything looked A-OK including kidneys, gall bladder etc.

I feel very, very, very lucky. My chronic drinking and development of liver pain & fatigue over the past number of months has had me worried sick. (original post from a couple of weeks ago below)

healthunlocked.com/britishl...

I can't quite believe that I have done no damage though - why would i have ongoing RUQ pain for months after drinking if there wasn't something going on? Bloods have returned good, Ultrasound returned good - i'm tempted to maybe get a fibroscan done privately just to be sure, or is this over the top?

Anyway, this scare has been a wake up call to show my body some respect. It's given me the jolt i needed to break my habitual drinking. I've tried to reduce my weekly intake many times over the years but never done it and if anything have slowly just drank more and more. I'm now 6 weeks without a drop, fatigue has subsided, sleeping well. Still a lingering discomfort in the liver area which i don't understand but hopefully it goes with time.

This is a great community & i've found it super helpful for understanding the risks around alcohol - it's been a real eye opener.

Thanks and good luck!

[CocoChannel]

That’s the best news possible. Well done!

Ask your doc if a fibroscan is worthwhile, but from what you’ve written, it’s probably not necessary so move on and start enjoying the new healthy life.

Staying quit will be an ongoing battle for life unfortunately. After nearly two years of no alcohol, I’ve felt like a drink these last few weeks, but we all know how that’ll end, so it’s easier not to go there. I should say the cravings after many months are minuscule compared to those of an active drinker or one who’s recently quit. Treat being sober with the deadly seriousness it deserves as many ex-drinkers have “one” drink and don’t stop again for years. There but for the grace of whoever go I.

[Richard-Allen]

I'd like to think though Patrick that this whole liver journey you've been on has been a wake-up call.

You no dought have a lot more knowledge and respect for this very special organ. Believe me, you really don’t want to end up going down the alcohol-related liver disease road.

Good luck

Richard

[mayk19]

Hi Patrick, that’s great news on the all clear. You sound like me, RUQ pain for a year now, fatigue and a little nausea , all clear tests but still present. I Had a Fibroscan, it was all clear, if it offers you peace of mind then do so, the odds are if bloods and ultrasound are ok fibroscan will be, but peace of mind is important.

I’ve stopped running, and drinking for two months now to see if I can pin down pain. You maybe like me, I knew I drank too much, so I joined the dots and led the medical people down that path, maybe missing my problem.

I’m now scheduled in for a lower abdomen MRI scan and Scopes to look if there is a problem there,,., or it’s mental ! Or muscular.

Hope that helps you a little with context and that there are others like you

Good luck finding your answers

Br Simon.

[safeduck10]

What you describe as a "stiff" feeling is exactly what I have too. I almost describe it as someone has inflated a balloon partially in my RUQ. It's hardly ever painful, when it is it's like a 1 or 2 out of 10. I also have mild fatigue the past 1-2 months which is unusal.

I've had a liver function test in October which came back "mildly high but no sign of liver damage" . Had another today but I don't think it will have improved as I've had a couple of stupid slip ups lately and indulged in a few beers too many due to a death in the family. I was doing well to avoid it until then. I think it's probably alcoholic fatty liver but we'll see.

I'm getting an ultrasound done and I hope the results are similar to yours. I'm expecting the worst though. I always thought all the stuff about 14 units a week was a load of boll*cks until recently, I'd drink that on a Saturday night! Might be paying the price for that way of thinking for so long...

[CocoChannel in reply to safeduck10]

My only issue with the 14 unit guidance is that the rationale isn’t clearly stated, and that’s why people don’t take it seriously. A study was done with 20 years of data, and the risk of certain types of cancers rises steeply with people regularly drinking over 14 units a week. It’s not the easiest document to read, but it’s attached below.

assets.publishing.service.g...

Each to their own, but I never drank 14 units in a day but I had a fatty liver and had become dependent on alcohol. That’s quite some tolerance to alcohol, so I’d go as far as recommending quitting for good.

[safeduck10 in reply to CocoChannel]

I'm no scientist, but I think regardless of the units your drink it's a luck of the draw, I know people who've drank a bottle of whiskey a day for the past 20 years and have only minor health issues, then there's people who drink like 3-4 beers a day for like 5 years and have liver complications. At age 24 and a heavy drinker for only like 3 years I think I'm in the latter category lol.

Either way you look at it though why take the risk, then again I knew the risks for years but did it anyway, alcohol is addictive and some of us get addicted to being drunk.

Looking back it scares me the units I used to drink in a day, I used to be a chef and we would drink like fish pretty much every day after our shifts... I think if damage has taken place it was then as I was easily drinking 10+ units a day, each day and kept that up for well over a year. I try to forget about it though, I cant change the past as much as I want to.

[CocoChannel in reply to safeduck10]

I’m no scientist, well actually I am sort of, but I’m not a biologist although I know about genes, genetic variation and so on, but such things are not for this site. Genetics clearly mean one person can drink that anecdotal bottle of whisky a day for twenty years and be fine whilst others aren’t so lucky. Scientists know which gene gives a person brown eyes or sickle cell or whatever, but there’s no test to see who can drink to excess without apparent harm. That means it’s all a big lottery.

The 14 unit weekly limit is based on 20 years or so of data. It’s pretty likely therefore that anyone drinking over 14 units a week for years will have a much higher risk of developing cancer.

That lengthy report I linked to above does also mention ex-drinkers and cancer. The risk does start to fall the longer a person has stopped drinking. Us ex-drinkers might just stay healthy if we stay good 🙂

Edit: As for the 10+ a day, the report mentions 6+ units a day towards the end and the risks thereof. It gets a bit scary ☹️

[gnillo]

Hello, I am relatively new to this forum and came across your post. Kudos on the good news so hopefully you keep it up. I’ve been a heavy drinker for the past 10 years or so and until recently didn’t take it serious until a visit in the ER showed elevated liver enzymes 300-400 (6-8x normal range) and a total bilirubin of 5.8. Unconjugated bilirubin/indirect was 3.8 which would explain the jaundice in my eyes and skin. After an ultrasound it showed fatty liver so I quit drinking cold turkey (36 days sober and going). After being referred to a liver specialist my liver enzymes returned to normal but my indirect bilirubin was still elevated despite abstinence. Doc completed a genetic test for Gilbert’s syndrome and it came back positive. Prior to being diagnosed last month I began having odd symptoms 4 months ago including bowel changes, insomnia, fatigue, unexplained weight loss, itchy ness at night, cold hands, URQ pain, loss of appetite... Doc said it was a benign condition but from what I’ve read on other forums about people who have Gilbert’s, they complained of similar symptoms and definitely didn’t see them as benign.

Hope this post helps and wishing you the best going forward.