Prevention of Liver Cirrhosis

The most important step you can take to prevent cirrhosis is to avoid excessive drinking. It is best to consume an average of no more than two alcoholic drinks a day for men or one drink a day for women. If you have chronic hepatitis or other liver problems, avoid alcohol completely.

Some other causes of cirrhosis can be prevented. To avoid infection with hepatitis B and C, do not inject illegal drugs, snort cocaine, or have unprotected sex, especially with multiple partners. If you are considering body piercing or tattooing, make sure that the equipment is cleaned properly. Health care and emergency workers should follow infection control precautions carefully whenever they are exposed to blood. Hepatitis B also can be prevented with a vaccine, a series of three shots that is 90% effective.
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Sweat May Transmit Hepatitis B Virus During Sports

Based on a study done on 70 male Turkish Olympic wrestlers, a new study indicated that close contact sports, such as football, soccer, basketball or wrestling, may put players at risk of catching the hepatitis B virus (HBV) from their sweating opponents. Some of the athletes were found to carry the virus in their blood while some had the virus in their sweat.....Click HERE to get more details.

New Drug for Hepatitis B Approved by the FDA

Medically Reviewed On: November 14, 2006

(HealthCentersOnline) - After a year-long international study, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has approved a new drug for the treatment of chronic hepatitis B in adults.

The drug, telbivudine (Tyzeka), is categorized by the FDA as a new molecular entity—a medication that contains an active substance that has never been approved by the FDA for marketing in the United States.

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Fatty Liver and Diabetes

Swedish researchers find that many patients with a common liver disease will eventually become diabetic.

Nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NFLD) is a buildup of fat in liver cells that is not caused by alcohol abuse. Type 2 diabetes is a metabolic disorder in which the body develops difficulty using the hormone insulin to process glucose for energy. Obesity is a major risk factor for both disorders.

The scientists found that 78 percent of the volunteers having NFLD developed diabetes or prediabetes, a condition that often leads to type 2 diabetes. They also linked NFLD, which is sometimes described as a minor condition, to a risk of developing end-stage liver disease.

They therefore recommend lifestyle modifications in all patients with NAFLD. Not only do lifestyle modifications reduce the risk of developing type 2 diabetes, intense dietary intervention may also improve liver histology in NAFLD.

What you need to know about liver cirrhosis

No body organ performs a wider variety of essential jobs than the liver. It:

* Produces essential proteins that help blood to clot
* Removes or neutralizes poisons, drugs and alcohol
* Manufactures bile that helps the body to absorb fats and cholesterol
* Helps to maintain normal blood sugar levels
* Regulates several hormones

Cirrhosis is a disease in which normal liver cells are replaced by scar tissue, which interferes with all of these important functions. In extreme cases, the damage is so severe that the only solution is a liver transplant. Cirrhosis is the eighth leading cause of death by disease in the United States, killing 25,000 people each year. It impairs thousands of other people as the liver gradually loses its ability to function.

Cirrhosis has many causes. In the United States and Europe, the most common causes are excessive alcohol use and chronic infection with the hepatitis C virus.

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FDA Calls for Tougher Warnings on OTC Painkillers

TUESDAY, Dec. 19 (HealthDay News) -- U.S. authorities are proposing stricter warning labels for popular over-the-counter pain relievers such as aspirin and Tylenol.

The warnings, which would address the potential for stomach bleeding as well as liver damage, would apply to acetaminophen products such as Tylenol as well as nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) such as aspirin and ibuprofen (Advil, Motrin), naproxen (Aleve) and ketoprofen (Oruvail).

Many product manufacturers already have voluntary warnings on their labels.

The new rule would make the warnings mandatory, would require the warnings to be more prominently displayed and would require standardized language, Dr. Charles Ganley, director of the U.S. Food and Drug Administration's Office of Nonprescription Products, Center for Drug Evaluation and Research, said during a Tuesday afternoon teleconference.

>Read the whole article here.