NAFLD

[Homebird1]

Hi all,

I am type 2 diabetic and overweight at 20st. I have been told my liver is fatty from an ultrasound. I had a fibroscan and was told the normal range was 2.5-7.5 and my score was 18. I was told by a letter that I may have cirrhosis. When I saw the liver specialist she said I definitely have a fatty liver but unsure if it is fibrosis or cirrhosis. She didn’t really seem bothered which it was as it’s all on the same scale. Her only advice was to lose weight which I am trying to do. She did blood tests and they have come back within normal range.

I have also been told my spleen is enlarged from the US. I have upper left quadrant pain that has plagued me for about a twelve month but has been worse for six months. More than the pain I am feeling dreadful fatigue which is preventing me working. The liver specialist seemed surprised by this. I am suffering constant diarrhoea and wonder if this is liver related or something else?

Can anyone share their experiences? Just feel like I am not getting any clear, straightforward answers.

Thanks in advance.

[Smegmer]

Hi

18 kpa is pretty serious and it does "suggest" Cirrhosis. You can only find out for certain with a biopsy, which does carry a small risk.

The Dr I would think will be treating you like you do have Cirrhosis, there isn't much else they can do. You need to lose weight and eat healthy, sorry if I'm being condescending, but that is all you can do to prevent further damage. Your bowl issues could well be linked to your Liver problem. Your blood numbers being good means you are "compensated" if you do have Cirrhosis. You need to keep it that way as much as you can. There is no magic pill or path to reverse Cirrhosis, generally when it there, its there. If you are lucky enough to have F2 scarring, that can heal over time.

[Homebird1 in reply to Smegmer]

I don’t think you are condescending at all. I am walking more and doing my best to eat healthily.

[Nalabanana]

Hi Homebird ,i also have nafld which was found out back in january 2021 my kpa score was 9 then i am overweight but not by to much , at the time i was eating healthy etc i have managed to loose a stone i had a repeat fibroscan this year and my kpa is 11 all my bloods are fine also so they are concerned so ive just had a biopsy and are waiting on results ,so i will keep you up todate on what is said 😊

[Homebird1 in reply to Nalabanana]

Thanks for your reply. Do you have any symptoms if you don’t mind me asking? I hope you won’t have to wait too long for your biopsy results.

[Nalabanana in reply to Homebird1]

It first started with aching on my right side they treated me for ibs and was on tablets for 12months ,but ache was still there so went back to drs, had a scan and had gallstones which were removed in 2019 ,on having regular bloods done they found that they were high (ggt atl )all the ones they check for liver ,so was sent for a fibroscan 2021 and showed kpa 9 and then repeated this year amd kpa 11 first it showed 16 but she did it again and it came out as 11 so seen consultant and he booked me for a biopsy which ive just had and this is were i am at the moment ,i still cant eat certain foods ,and i watch what i eat ive also changed from semi skimmed milk to soya (not sure if it helps me) i still get diarrhia but have found i cant eat bread or anything like that now .hope this helps and you get answers from your gp x

[Homebird1 in reply to Nalabanana]

Thank you for sharing. I seem to have pain more on my left side although I do have it right sided at times. It’s just not as persistent as the left. My diarrhoea is constant and I have been tested for coeliac and that was negative. I am looking at trying to eliminate certain things from my diet to see if that can indicate a problem.

Thanks for replying. I’m interested to hear them experience of others.

[Springwater22 in reply to Nalabanana]

Hi Nalabanana,

Hope you don't mind me asking but what you've said about the pain and diet caught my attention.

My husband has cirrhosis (tbc genetic liver condition) and has pain now and then on his left and right side. Its nothing too bad, I just notice him absently rubbing under his ribs on the side sometimes and he says unless he notices it, it doesn't bother him. He saw GP recently who gave him a check over and had no concerns it was fluid or anything, but was reluctant to investigate more as he is already still going through the diagnosis and investigations with the specialists. GP did say it could be bloating, as that can cause pain in the flanks. Makes some sense to me as he's often bloated and complaining of a big belly!

I suggested he keeps a food diary, and notes alongside it when he notices pain, as I wondered if something like gluten could be a culprit.

I suppose my question is, did your consultant suggest the pain was related to your liver condition or more likely diet? Have you found not eating bread has helped?

Thank you

[Nalabanana in reply to Springwater22]

Hi no consultain hasnt really said anything about the pain ,ive just kept an eye on what im eating and noted it down , bread is one of the biggest things i find that dont agree with me ,if i eat it within half hour im full of wind so i avoid it ,with the milk i changed to soya as its less fat to help with weight loss , i still have some pain in my right side under my ribs but isnt as bad as it used to be ,i just get on with things now ..

[Mkvi in reply to Nalabanana]

Interesting that your score increased even with your healthy lifestyle!

[Mkvi]

Here is my quick story. I am only 23. Last year, I weighted 340 pounds. 8 KPa fibro, bloods were sky high at 140’s-150’s for both ALT and AST. A year later, I am 190 pounds, after a massive 150 pound weight loss. No more NAFLD, bloods are normal range, fibro is at 7. I now eat close to 3000 calories per day just to maintain my active lifestyle and it’s extremely hard to gain weight on a whole food, Mediterranean style diet

[Nalabanana in reply to Mkvi]

Thats amazing ive lost a stone was looking into the med diet is it easy to follow as im always on my feet at work and dont have time to sit and eat a tidy meal in day time, think my problem i dont make time to eat properly .

[Mkvi in reply to Nalabanana]

The truth is yes, it takes work. I meal prep every day and i spend a good 2-3 hours once per week preparing everything and organising into containers. The cost is also outrageous. I did my calculations and I spend approx $900 / month on food as it’s all organic, non processed, real food. Well worth it though

[Nalabanana in reply to Mkvi]

Thank you id like to loose another 2-3 stone so think il get a receipe book for ideas .

[Ruggerhead in reply to Nalabanana]

Hi, Im in the same boat as you exactly, I had a scan done then went away for a year, no drink, lost some weight etc and came back expecting a lower score, but i had gone up. They tell me Im rare and unusual, go figure. what did the biopshy reveal? what are they teling you/ I have just been asked to come back in a few months to see my consultant again, why are your scores getting worse do they say, any reason?

[Nalabanana in reply to Ruggerhead]

Hi still waiting on results ,the consultant said its nafld and he was talking about trials they are doing to help with weight loss etc ..

[Ruggerhead in reply to Nalabanana]

Im the same but did they give you any explanation as to why your KPA was getting worse rather than better after doing everything right. Like you i went away and gave up any alcohol, junk food etc etc exercise more and yet my nAFLD gets worst each scan, and no reason

[Homebird1 in reply to Mkvi]

Wow fair play to you that is amazing to lose all that weight. Glad to hear it has helped your scores etc.

It is something I will look into too.