Love and be careful of the liver, pay attention not to get lost.
For patients with liver disease, transaminases are not an unfamiliar word, every time you go to check liver function, transaminases will appear on the test sheet, and patients are also more concerned about the changes in transaminases.
What is aminotransferase?
Aminotransferases are a class of enzymes that catalyze amino transfer between amino acids and ketoacids. It is commonly found in animal tissues such as myocardium, brain, liver, and kidneys. Transaminases are also a "barometer" that reflects the normal function of the liver, and whether there are lesions in liver cells can be seen from the numerical value of transaminases.
What are aminotransferases?
ALT (alanine transaminases) is mainly present in the liver and is therefore a more specific marker of hepatocyte damage. ALT levels correlate with the degree of abdominal obesity.
AST (aspartate aminotransferase) is found in the liver and other organs, including the heart muscle, skeletal muscle, kidneys, and brain. AST levels in children decrease with age and are more pronounced in girls after age 11 years.
ALP (serum alkaline phosphatase) is mainly derived from the liver and bones. Elevated alkaline phosphatase can be subdivided to determine whether it originates in the liver or bone. Hepatic origin is generally confirmed by elevated other markers of cholestasis (eg, GGT) with concomitant cholestasis. Alkaline phosphatase levels also vary with age. Due to the active physiological osteoblasts, alkaline phosphatase levels are usually higher in children and adolescents. Levels can be up to 3 times higher than in healthy adults, with the highest levels occurring during infancy and adolescence, corresponding to the period when bone growth is the fastest.
GGT (glutamate transpeptidase) is found in hepatocytes and bile duct epithelial cells, as well as in the kidneys, seminal vesicles, pancreas, spleen, heart, and brain. In normal term neonates, serum GGT activity is 6-7 times higher than the upper limit of the normal reference range in adults, and declines to low levels by 5-7 months of age
What does a mild elevation of Alanine aminotransferase (ALT) mean?
Alanine aminotransferase is a very sensitive enzyme in the human body, under normal circumstances, its concentration is 0 ~ 40U / L, once the concentration exceeds 40U / L, it means that liver function is damaged. In general, the higher the concentration of transaminases, the more severe the degree of liver damage.
But this is not to say that as long as the aminotransferase is elevated, the liver has problems. Sometimes, especially before a blood test, if you take cold medicine, exercise vigorously, have a fever, drink alcohol, or get overly tired, it is possible to skew the results. Therefore, if the concentration of alanine aminotransferase is found to be abnormally elevated during the physical examination, do not worry, rest for a month, and then go to the examination again, if the test results are still abnormal, then most of them are suffering from liver disease.
What are the causes of mild to moderate elevation of alanine aminotransferase?
●Use of drugs
●Chronic viral hepatitis (hepatitis B, C, and D)
●Alcoholic liver disease
●Hemochromatosis
●Non-alcoholic fatty liver disease
●Autoimmune hepatitis
●Wilson's disease
●α-1 antitrypsin deficiency
●Congestive liver disease
●Bile duct deficiency in adults
●Malignant infiltration (most commonly breast, small cell lung, lymphoma, melanoma, or myeloma)
●Muscle disorders (eg, subclinical hereditary muscle metabolic diseases)
●Thyroid disease
●Celiac disease
●Adrenal insufficiency
●Anorexia nervosa
●MacroAST [moderately elevated plasma AST levels due to AST-immunoglobulin (usually IgG) complex][28]
What should I do if aminotransferases are elevated?
Elevated transaminases mean abnormal liver function, which sounds terrible, but at this time, the patient's condition is generally not serious.
There are many reasons for the elevation of aminotransferases, and it is necessary to carry out corresponding specialist examinations under the guidance of a specialist doctor to clarify the cause, and then actively remove the cause and cooperate with treatment. Patients should pay attention to following the doctor's instructions, adjusting the diet, not eating spicy and greasy food, not smoking, not drinking, exercising more, scientific work and rest, ensuring adequate sleep, and slowly recovering health.
In addition, the psychological impact on physiology is very profound, so patients must adjust their mood, maintain a positive and optimistic attitude towards life, do not be excessively sad, do not be negative, and control anger, so that both prongs will soon return to health.