my sister has abused alcohol for decades and i have not seen her for years.?

Question

she is coming home with these symptoms. a swollen abdomen as if 9 mo pregnant, severe pain, no appetite, hepatitus. the stomach area was partially drained 2 wks ago but immediately refilled. the dr will not drain again and she is a candidate for liver transplant. what can i expect and do you suppose she has come to die, in the near future

Answer 1

a candidate for liver transplant means that her liver is in stage 4 (out of 4 stages) There is compensated liver failure and decompensated liver failure. compensated means the liver is just about managing, but decompensated means it is too overwhelmed. If she is a candidate for liver transplant that means she is in a bit of trouble. I thought you have to be free of addictions to get a transplant? I hope she does survive but to be frank there are more deserving people who haven't destroyed their own liver through their own actions and I hope they get the livers available. But my sympathies go to you.

Answer 2

It sounds like you know that she is really sick.
I don't know if she is still drinking but she should STOP immediately!!!!!
This condition that you describe is called "Ascites" and is fluid that collects in the abdominal cavity from your vascular system. Draining it is only a temporary fix, it will soon fill up again, giving her the appearance of being pregnant.
Her body will be very thing and the only thing that will stand out is her large abdomen..
Things won't get better.
and a Transplant may not be enough to save her.
This is why we should take care our our bodies when we are young, so it can last us longer than average,
Once you have organ damage is very difficult to recuperate from that.
Give her lots of support cause she may not last too long.
I wish you and your sister the best.

Answer 3

if the person continues to drink alcohol,liver damage will progress&probably be fatal.if the person stops drinking,some of the liver damage(except that from scarring)may repair itself,&chances are good that the person will live longer

Answer 4

Your sister has cirrhosis of the liver. That is when the liver
cells die and form scar tissue. The scar tissue blocks the
flow of blood to the other cells that are functioning...in doing
this it blocks the nourishment and oxygen reaching these
cells and they die also. Cirrhosis is a progressive disease.
The end stages of this disease are very serious:
(1) your sister has what is known as "Ascites". This f
fluid build up in her abdominal area caused by the
liver not being able to efficiently make a protein known as
Albumin. This albumin is what keeps the fluids in our
vessels...when it becomes low in the blood, the fluid seeps
into the abdomen. Doctor remove this fluid doing a
procedure known as paracentesis. I do not known why
the doctor said they will not remove it again, cause this
may need to be done in order for her to breathe well.
(2) Your sister may also have a condition known as
"Encephalopathy"...that means she can be easily
confused and not be able to handle her own affairs well.
This happens because the body uses protein and the
by product of the protein is ammonia. The liver takes the
ammonia and converts it to urea to be disposed of by
the body. Now, because the liver cannot do this...the
ammonia goes out into the blood and pass the blood
brain barrier and into the brain. There should be
someone in the family who is appointed to handle all
her affairs now. This requires an advanced directive...
which you can get free according to your state on line or
a durable power of attorney made up. The privacy laws
are extremely hard on the family...if anyone wants to
be able to talk to her doctors, get her medical records,
or help her...they definitely will need this...even relatives.
There are drugs that can bind the ammonia in the
intestines that can help her mental condition: Lactalose
is one of them.
(3) She will have muscle wasting. This is because there
is no longer enough protein being made, so the body starts to use the protein in the body up and causes this muscle wasting. Some think they should give protein supplements...this is not to be done unless the doctor says, as the kidneys are trying to take over doing the job of getting rid of toxins and extra protein may place on added burden on them. The doctor can tell her protein levels by her blood
work and too low protein or too high can become a
problem.
(4) Her feet and legs may swell up and she may need a
larger size slipper and shoes. This fluid here is known
as "Edema". This is caused because when a patient
has cirrhosis of the liver, sodium builds up in the blood and
hold the fluids in the body. The doctor may place her on
diuretics and a low sodium diet to help this fluid and also
slow down the build up of the fluid in the abdomen.
Her Sodium levels have to be watched very closely during
this time, as sodium is one of the elements that keeps the
heart beating in rhythm. Elevating the legs some when lying down will help redistribute the fluid elsewhere. Do not
massage the legs during this time period. If a blood clot
should form in the leg, massaging them could break off
part of it and it may go to the lungs.
(5) Your sister may develop varies. Because the blood
flows to the liver in the portal vein, when the liver is no
longer able to handle it...it will back up and go into other
vessels that are not used to that amount of blood or the
pressure of the blood. These vessels can balloon out in
weak places like the esophagus, rectum, or belly button
area. They are varicose veins that can break open and
cause internal bleeding. If she ever spits up blood that
may be bright red, or brownish like coffee grounds...it
is an "emergency"that needs taken care of right away.
The doctors can go in and band these varicose veins
in the esophagus and stop the bleeding.

A person has to be evaluated to be placed on the
transplant list. This requires much testing and seeing
different doctors. No one can be placed on the transplant
list unless they have stop drinking alcohol for a period of
six months before. She needs to be with a Hepatologist
which is a specialist in the field of the liver...and who
preferably is with the Transplant Center where the transplant
will take place.
Here is a link to explain more about Cirrhosis of the liver:
http://www.mayoclinic.com/health/cirrhosis/DS00373
Here is a link about liver transplantation and the liver:
http://www.surgery.usc.edu/divisions/hep/patientguide/index.html
Here are a few more links that are special to transplant
patients and will answer even about help in financing:
http://www.unos.org/
http://www.transplantliving.org/

If you need to help your sister, here are a few things you
can do now:
(1) Find out her complete medical history...all pass
hospitalization, all doctors she has and the address and
phone numbers, all medication she is taking and why
she is on them and who prescribed...also find out your
family medical history. This information is very valuable
in her care. The doctors need to know any allergies to
anything she may have and a number of other things.
(2) Someone will eventually need to drive her to her
appointments and should be with her in her doctor visits.
Having a notebook to write down instructions the doctors
gives her and giving the doctor info that she might not
be able to supply herself.
(3) She is going to be extremely tired. She should be
allowed to sleep whenever she is able to do so. Her
patterns of sleep will change. She may not be able to
sleep at night and need to rest on and off all day.
(4) If she is not able to eat, it is very important that
she has nourishment, through food, to help her body
heal....ask the doctor about supplements that will
be suited for her condition.
(5) Don't take medications that are not prescribed by
the doctor. The liver processes all medications and
breaks them down for the body to use. Many medication
are hard on the liver and the doctor knows which ones they
are. Tell the doctor all medications she is on: over the
counter, herbs, herbal teas, and medications prescribed
by other doctors.
(6) If someone is sick, or has been sick, or been around
someone else who has been sick....it is not good for
them to be around her. Her body is extremely weak now.
Contacting someone elses illness can pull her down more
and cause her to take more medication than she should
have now.
(7) Don't be afraid to get in contact with the doctor and
his office no matter how unimportant you think it is.
Be sure to get the number of someone you can contact
in an emergency situation. If she is placed on the
transplant list: they will provide you with a special person
to call.

I hope this has been of some help to you.
Having this disease is like a nightmare you cannot wake
up from. It takes alot of patience, understanding,
compassion to help someone through this time in their
life. If only we could go back in time...how each of us
would change things...but we cannot...we can only go
on into the future and forget pass mistakes.
I hope this will bring you and your sister much closer
together.
Take care and best wishes.

Answer 5

They won't put her on a transplant list if she's still drinking. I have your family in my prayers.

Answer 6

Sounds like cirrhosis, and probably.