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Hello
My husband was recently diagnosed with alcoholic liver disease. He has severe jaundice, loss of appetite, fatigue, back ache - there is no bleeding or loss of memory etc.

My question is can I give him any over the counter medication for his back ache and something that might help sleep better? Waiting to see a heptalogist and found this forum so thought of asking for some help.

Also from the symptoms can anyone tell what stage he is at?

No he had completely stopped drinking. His biggest concern right now is the fatigue and back ache. Our internist did some tests and has prescribed a due relic and lactose. Other than that he told us to just wait and watch. But I'm hoping to get more answers from the heptalogist.

Another question is was anyone prescribed steroids? Does it help with this condition?

Thanks for your response. No he does not have hep c. And hopefully we caught it in the initial stages (fingers crossed)

Can u tell me if fatigue and body ache are standard symptoms? And how long do they last? Is there a timeline for when he can start feeling better if he doesn't drink again?

And lastly if you have any info bout using steroids to treat this illness , I would really appreciate the input. Thanks a ton.

Fatigue and aches go hand in hand with hepatitis. As far as steroids, unless the docs insist on them, try not to use them. The side effects are terrible. Steroids are sometimes used for people with auto immune hepatitis and some transplant patients. There is no way to know when, or if the symptoms of fatigue and aches will go away.

Hi Koel,

Welcome to Healing Well. As you have already seen, this is a nice group of people helping each other.

My husband has cirrhosis due to alcohol. No hep C. He experienced the fatigue, loss of appetite, jaundice, weight loss...among other things. He stopped drinking 18 months ago, although he did have a slip at 50 weeks. He feels really good now. Gained back his weight. His bilirubin is not back in normal range, but it is really close. He was fatigued for 4-6 months before he started to feel back to normal for his energy levels.

His GI doctor said that the jaundice is the last symptom to come back to normal...if it ever does. My husband saw steady improvement in his labs over the course of a year...and now they are stable. Labs returned to normal, or near normal ranges. He still has low platelets, high bilirubin as I mentioned, and his INR has stayed at 1.3. Our lab's high normal is 1.1.

His doctors told him that the best thing he could do for his health would be to STOP DRINKING FOREVER.

You didn't mention your husband's age, or for how long he has been experiencing symptoms.

Following a healthy diet, with plenty of fresh fruit and veggies is very important. Eliminating red meat and reducing sodium is also important. Check in with your husband's doctor about what vitamins he should be taking. When my hubby didn't have an appetite, his doctor had him drink an ensure drink 3 times per day. My husband does not take any OTC meds without checking in with his doctor first. He has not taken any steroids. His doctor has never mentioned steroids, and in my experience here on Healing Well or in any of my reading or on line research have I heard steriods being used to treat liver disease.

I hope that your husband will be seeing a specialist soon and he begins to heal and feel better.

Emma

PS...my husband had lots of aches and pains especially the back.  He felt that he stopped drinking and then everything start to hurt.  We used warm compresses or ice packs for his back pain.  He also went to physical therapy and a chiropracter.  His favorite was we got an electric massager...I would use it on his back every night.  Eventually, his back pain did improve.

Post Edited (healthynow) : 3/12/2012 10:14:55 PM (GMT-6)

Oh, Mr Ziffle...naughty! Naughty! Yes it's for him...but I like it too! Haha!

Emma

Koel,
So sorry to hear your hubby is feeling so poorly. He is a young guy! He has youth on his side. My hubby was 61 when he got his cirrhosis dx. As I mentioned, he had all sorts of aches and pains and fatigue. These gradually got better over time...but it wasn't over night...took at least 6 months. I was scared that during that time he might use it as an excuse to go back to drinking since all the aches and pains came on when he stopped...but thank goodness he stuck to sobriety. Other ills...bad sleeping, bloody noses, gagging...those all went away immediately after no more drinking. And they have NOT COME BACK!!!

Sorry no knowledge of herbals. Be careful of those too...check with your doctor!

The back massager I got for him plugs in with a long cord...it has two round protrusions that heat and vibrate...it kinda looks like an ET (1980s movie) head. I got it from Bed Bath Beyond: http://www.bedbathandbeyond.com/product.asp?SKU=16756032

Hang in there.

Emma

Stay away from herbal meds.

So I got a masseur to come home and give him a massage this evening. He is feeling a lot better atheist for now. I will get him the electric massager and some cold packs tomm. Not sure what else I can do to relieve his backache.

So far he is not bleeding and there is no memory loss or confusion. Hopefully it stays that way.

Any idea on the timeline for when he can start seeing some improvement?

Thank you all for your comments, it's really helping me with a lot of unanswered questions.

Great post Hyde1...who better than someone who has actually BEEN there to set things straight!  Carol

hi moniesol,

was your boyfriend getting severe abdomen pain? i am taking him to the doctor today to see what is causing the pain.

if anybody in this forum had similar symptoms pls let me know.

thank you all.

Hi Koel:

Yes please post and let us know what the doctor says about the severe abdomen pain. Oscar has always had tenderness in the liver area of his abdomen but lately he has had severe stomach pain which is when he takes tramadol for his pain. He tries not to take too much pain medicine. I try and see if there is something that triggers the pain but I have not been able to pinpoint it out. He just started a new medication that should help with his confusion but it has only been a couple days he started taking it. We will see how he does. Please keep us informed....Monica

Thanks for the advise Ziffie I will make sure he eats before he takes it. He has put on about 10 lbs but I dont know if its water retention his stomach is getting a lil big and he is concerned with an umbilical hernia he has developed since he coughs alot, because of the fluid retention in the lung cavity, the hernia tends to protude....never ending