Cirrhosis is a kind of diffuse liver damage caused by hepatocyte necrosis, which is mainly manifested by spreading fibrosis of liver tissue, regenerating nodules and pseudolobular shapes.
Due to the strong compensatory function of the liver, cirrhosis is not an acute disease, and most of the symptoms are not obvious at the beginning of the disease, but with the development of the disease, liver function damage, portal hypertension and other symptoms can occur in the later stage.
There are many causes of cirrhosis, such as toxic hepatitis, alcoholic liver disease, non-alcoholic fatty liver disease, excessive accumulation of bile, long-term use of specific drugs or exposure to certain poisons, liver blood circulation disorders, genetic and metabolic diseases, etc.
It is precisely because there are too many triggers that more and more people suffer from cirrhosis. Treatment must be made immediately after the diagnosis of cirrhosis of the liver to avoid serious complications.
So what are the complications of advanced cirrhosis?
1. Hepatic encephalopathy
Hepatic encephalopathy is a severe central nervous system lesion caused by acute or chronic liver disease and is one of the typical complications of cirrhosis.
This is because cirrhosis can directly lead to a decrease in liver function, so that the concentration of ammonia in the body gradually increases.
When too much ammonia enters the brain through the blood circulation, it will have a toxic effect on brain cells, resulting in a phenomenon similar to cerebral edema, and eventually form hepatic encephalopathy.
2. Portal hypertension
When a patient develops cirrhosis, the structure of the lobular lobules of the liver will inevitably be damaged to a certain extent, so that a large amount of blood is stasis in the portal vein, resulting in a significant increase in the pressure of the portal vein.
If the stalted blood is diverted to the esophageal fundus plexus, it may also induce varicose veins of the esophagus.
If the disease is not controlled in time, the excess water in the body cannot be discharged normally, resulting in hepatic ascites, lower limb edema and other physical abnormalities. If you eat hard food at this stage, it may also cause congestive stomach disease.
3. Primary liver cancer
Cirrhosis and primary liver cancer also have a certain relationship. Cirrhosis not only leads to degenerative necrosis of hepatocytes, proliferation of interstitial connective tissue, but also to nodule regeneration of residual liver cells.
If the disease is not controlled, liver cells may become cancerous during repeated proliferation. The more severe the damage to liver cells, the more pronounced the hyperplasia and the greater the likelihood of carcinogenicity, so cirrhosis is one of the main factors inducing primary liver cancer.
It should be noted that there are many causes of primary liver cancer, such as alcoholic hepatitis, viral hepatitis, etc. However, no matter what kind of inducement, it is very serious, and everyone should pay attention to it.
4. Hepatorenal syndrome
When cirrhosis progresses to an advanced stage, it may also induce hepatorenal syndrome, which is mainly manifested as oliguria and anuria, hemorrhagic jaundice, decreased appetite and other symptoms.
If it is at this stage of the terminal stage, the patient will also have symptoms of anuria, a sharp drop in blood pressure, and even enter a state of deep coma.
Hepatorenal syndrome is an extremely difficult condition, which can even lead to renal failure in severe cases, and the mortality rate can be as high as 80% to 95%.
In addition to these conditions, cirrhosis can cause many complications, such as spontaneous bacterial peritonitis, hepatic pleural fluid and so on.
However, no matter what kind of complications, it will cause serious harm to the body, and the fatality of some complications is extremely high, so when diagnosed with cirrhosis, it is necessary to immediately carry out symptomatic treatment without delay.
At the same time, in life, we should also pay attention to a light diet, regular work and rest, and minimize the stimulation and damage to the liver.