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I Am Alcoholic Decompensated Cirrhosis. Gaining And Losing Weight Due To Ascites. How To Get Rid Of This?

Posted on Mon, 6 Aug 2012

Question: Hi. I am a 38-year old female with alcoholic decompensated cirrhosis. No I don't drink anymore. I've had many infections - SBP, strep, VRE - you name it. I've had 5 endoscopies and they had to band my varices three times but now the blood vessels are all closed off so the bleeding has stopped. I am sick of gaining and losing weight due to ascites. I can't even wear the same size clothes when I get all puffy and fat. Is there anything else I can do to reduce this complication besides low salt diet, lasix and aldactone, and fluid restriction? They drained me once at the hospital but all the fluid came right back in a day or two. I literally go from 115 to 140 lbs - I can't stand it! Can I get liposuction to get rid of the excess fat around my belly so the swelling in my belly will be smaller?

Answered by Dr. Ajit Naniksingh Kukreja (1 hour later)

Hi

Thanks for posting your query

It is very sad learning about your condition

Unfortunately cirrhosis in your case is not reversible

All treatment that you are taking is the best remedy for management of ascites

Go for tapping only if there is discomfort

No - liposuction is not advisable rather contraindicated , it can cause bad bleeding

The ultimate remeedy is Liver Transplant

Hope this helps
Do write back if you have doubts
Wishing you a healthy life ahead

Above answer was peer-reviewed by : Dr. Chakravarthy Mazumdar

Follow up: Dr. Ajit Naniksingh Kukreja (6 hours later)

Thank you.
I'm feeling OK most times, except for occasional GI problems and getting extremely tired. My MELD score has dropped since I was first diagnosed in January 2012 from 14 to 8 from my most recent blood test. However I still get very sick from infections that turn into sepsis and I'm stuck in ICU for at least a week. Am I in more danger from the infections than the actual disease?

Thank you XXXXXX

Answered by Dr. Ajit Naniksingh Kukreja (15 hours later)

Hi XXXXXX

Actually both the infections and the actual disease go hand in hand as far as the risks are concerned

MELD is a scoring system used for assessing the severity of Chronic liver disease

Unfortunately as per the reference values anything below 9 has a potential risk

I would suggest you follow the instructions of your healthcare provider very strictly and do not hesitate to write back in case of need

Today being Sunday was away from my desk but I saw the mail on my android and took some time to respond from my smart phone itself, so please let go the typos if there are any

In case you feel like talking to me, any hour of the day call back on 0000, I will ask the XXXXXXX people to allow you to communicate directly

Hope this helps
Wishing you a very healthy life ahead

Above answer was peer-reviewed by : Dr. Chakravarthy Mazumdar

Follow up: Dr. Ajit Naniksingh Kukreja (1 hour later)

Thank you very much.

Answered by Dr. Ajit Naniksingh Kukreja (16 hours later)

You Are Welcome Anytime
Get Well Soon

Note: In case of any other concern or query related to prevention, evaluation, diagnosis, treatment, or the recovery of persons with the any type of addiction or substance use, follow up with our Addiction Medicine Specialist. Click here to book a consultation now.

Above answer was peer-reviewed by : Dr. Chakravarthy Mazumdar