Bob & Larry's Exotic Adventure -Liver Transplant Fundraiser
Terminology and Procedures - Based on my Experience
this page is designed to provide a basic knowledge of some of what you're facing as you move forward. It is by no means intended for medical purposes more like a diary of my exotic adventure. After all that's the title of the website
Liver transplantation (LT) is a life-saving modality for treating well-selected patients with acute liver failure, end-stage liver disease, certain metabolic disorders and early hepatocellular carcinoma. The current practice of LT is limited by the significant disparity between organ availability and the number of patients awaiting transplantation. Donation after cardiac death (DCD) has become a significant source of transplantable organs in an attempt to expand the donor pool and increase organ supply. While DCD allografts have the potential to help address the disparity between organ availability and the number of patients awaiting LT, their use has been associated with higher rates of graft failure and biliary complication, particularly ischemic cholangiopathy, compared with donation after brain death (DBD) allografts Source Canadian Journal of Gastroenterology & Hepatolog
Pancytopenia is a condition in which a person’s body has too few red blood cells, white blood cells, and platelets. Each of these blood cell types has a different job in the body:
Transjugular Intrahepatic Portosystemic Shunt in Radiology
A transjugular intrahepatic portosystemic shunt (TIPS) is a percutaneously created connection within the liver between the portal and systemic circulations. A TIPS is placed to reduce portal pressure in patients with complications related to portal hypertension. This procedure has emerged as a less invasive alternative to surgery in patients with end-stage liver disease
Portal Hypertension
Endoscopy
Portal hypertension is an increase in the blood pressure within a system of veins called the portal venous system. Veins coming from the stomach, intestine, spleen, and pancreas merge into the portal vein, which then branches into smaller vessels and travels through the liver. If the vessels in the liver are blocked due to liver damage, blood cannot flow properly through the liver. As a result, high pressure in the portal system develops. This increased pressure in the portal vein may lead to the development of large, swollen veins (varices) within the esophagus, stomach, rectum, or umbilical area (belly button). Varices can rupture and bleed, resulting in potentially life-threatening complications.
Splenomegaly
Your spleen is an organ located just below your left rib cage. Many conditions — including infections, liver disease and some cancers — can cause an enlarged spleen, also known as splenomegaly (spleh-no-MEG-uh-lee).
An enlarged spleen usually doesn't cause symptoms. It's often discovered during a routine physical exam. Your doctor generally can't feel a normal-sized spleen in adults but can feel an enlarged spleen. Your doctor will likely request imaging and blood tests to help identify the cause.
Treatment for an enlarged spleen focuses on the underlying condition that's causing it. Surgically removing an enlarged spleen isn't usually the first treatment, but is sometimes recommended.
An Endoscopy is a simple procedure which allows a doctor to look inside human bodies using an instrument called an endoscope. A cutting tool can be attached to the end of the endoscope, and the apparatus can then be used to perform surgery. This type of surgery is called Key hole surgery, and usually leaves only a tiny scar externally. Capsule Endoscopy - Capsule endoscopy is a procedure that uses a tiny wireless camera to take pictures of your digestive tract. A capsule endoscopy camera sits inside a vitamin-size capsule you swallow. As the capsule travels through your digestive tract, the camera takes thousands of pictures that are transmitted to a recorder you wear on a belt around your waist. Capsule endoscopy helps doctors see inside your small intestine — an area that isn't easily reached with more-traditional endoscopy procedures. Traditional endoscopy involves passing a long, flexible tube equipped with a video camera down your throat or through your rectum. Capsule endoscopy has also been approved for the screening of the colon for colon polyps for those for whom a colonoscopy couldn't be completed. But how and on whom it will be used is still being determined because better alternatives are available. As technology improves, capsule endoscopy of the colon may be used more in the future.
Hepatic Encephalopathy
You've had liver disease for a while, but now you notice something different about the way you act and feel. Maybe you forget things or get confused when someone's talking to you. Your friends may tell you that your speech sounds slurred or that you say things that aren't appropriate.
And it isn’t only changes in behavior. You might feel sluggish or find that you can't move your hands well anymore. Or your breath doesn't smell like it should.
What's going on? Is there a link to the liver problems you've been dealing with for years?
It could be. You may have hepatic encephalopathy (HE), a disorder caused by a buildup of toxins in the brain that can happen with advanced liver disease. It affects a lot of things, like your behavior, mood, speech, sleep, or the way you move.
Sometimes the symptoms are so mild that it's hard for anyone to notice. But whether you have obvious signs or just a few subtle changes, it's important to see your doctor. The right treatment can help keep your condition under control, but if you don't take care of yourself, your condition will continue to worsen.
