High levels Of ALT AND ALP?!
Question: all the other liver tests are fine, the doctor doesnt know whats up, he said its strange, hes got me all freaked out help !!!!
Answers: all the other liver tests are fine, the doctor doesnt know whats up, he said its strange, hes got me all freaked out help !!!!
Let me explain about these tests and what
the doctor is looking at and then I will
give you more information.
There are basically three tests the doctor
does when it involves the liver: one is
the liver enzymes which is the ALT, AST,
and Alkaline phosphatase. Another one
is the liver function tests which is the
Bilirubin, Albumin and INR. And then
there is testing to see if you have obtained
a virus like Hepatitis A,B,C, etc.
Do not panic yet. Since you mentioned the
liver enzymes, I'm going to tell you things
about them so you will understand better.
The ALT and AST levels can be elevated
if there is damage to the cells of the liver or
even if you exercised alot before the test was done. The liver enzymes are located
inside the cell, if the cell is damaged, these
enzymes leak out into the blood and can
show a rise on the blood work. However,
these tests are not all inclusive. The doctor
has to look at all the other testing done to
determine if this is a true problem with the
liver. The ALT enzyme is made mostly
in the liver, whereas the AST enzyme can
be in other organs and is not specific to
the liver itself. The Alkaline PHosphatase
level is mainly in the biliary area coming
out of the liver to the intestines.
No test is 100% accurate. The doctor will,
therefore, do more blood testing to be
sure of the results before proceeding
further. Liver problems usually start out
as inflammation developing in the liver.
This inflammation can be seen on an
ultrasound, CT scan, and can sometimes
be felt when he pushes on your upper right
area of the abdomen toward the underside
of the rib. Inflammation that is caught early
on can be treated with medication and in
some instances, if the cause of it is stopped, then the liver cells can heal and
the processed reversed.
Some of the things that can cause this
inflammation are:
Alcohol consumption, medication toxification, chemical exposure, fatty liver
caused by alcohol or high weight gain,
a gallstone moving out and blocking the
biliary area so the bile flowing from the
liver backs up into the liver. These are
a few things that can be helped by the
patient. Tell the doctor all medications you
are taking which includes over the counter,
herbs, herbal teas, vitamins, minerals,
muscle building suppliments, and medication
prescribed by other doctors. Never take
any kind of alcohol with medications.
Some of the things that may cause
inflammation that are out of the patients
control are: hereditary problems, biliary
are malformation, auto immune disease,
viral infections such as Hep A,B,C. and
a few others.
Until all the tests results are in, there is
little a doctor can really tell you. They usually do the most tests that are not
invasive first, like an ultrasound, CT scan,
MRI, and blood work. If they find that
the liver cells have died, then later they
will have to do a test known as a liver
biopsy. It is the main test done, usually as
a last resort, to see how the liver is doing by
looking at a sample of the liver itself and
not just films of it.
I want to mention that the Alk Phosphatase is also not specific just to the liver, it could
be raised if someone has bone problem and
for children it is high because they continue
to grow in height.
I know it is hard to wait and see...since you
said all your other levels are normal, that
may mean that what ever it is, it may be
treated effectively and is caught early on.
Best wishes. I hope this info has helped.
If you want to know more about these
tests: you can place the abbreviations or
name of the tests you mentioned, on this
site and it will tell you more about them or
type in "Liver function tests", "Liver enzymes", or the name (abbreviation) of the test in your search engine.
http://www.labtestsonline.org