#常德头条 ##常德市第四人民医院#
On this day, Wang Jianhua, director of the Department of Gastroenterology at the Fourth People's Hospital of Changde City, received an urgent call from the daughter of an elderly patient with liver cirrhosis, and her voice was full of worry and anxiety. "Hello, Dr. Wang, my mother has recently started to talk nonsense and even urinate in the open, and we can't persuade her. We were worried about whether she had Alzheimer's disease. ”
Director Wang Jianhua is well aware of the complex and changeable physical conditions of patients with liver cirrhosis, so he carefully inquired about the patient's condition before the onset of the disease on the phone. It turned out that the patient had had symptoms of diarrhea before the onset of the disease. Combined with her long-term history of liver cirrhosis, Director Wang Jianhua quickly made a preliminary judgment: "Your mother may have hepatic encephalopathy, which is a serious complication and needs to be treated in the hospital as soon as possible. ”
Thanks to the trust and good doctor-patient relationship established with patients and their families in the past, the patient's daughter has great trust in the medical level and service of the Fourth People's Hospital of Changde City. She immediately decided to send her mother to the Fourth People's Hospital of Changde City, where Wang Jianhua, director of the Department of Gastroenterology, was responsible for diagnosis and treatment.
After arriving at the Fourth People's Hospital of Changde City, the Department of Gastroenterology quickly conducted a comprehensive examination for the patient. The results of the examination showed that the patient was indeed in the second stage of hepatic encephalopathy. This is a stage that requires timely intervention and treatment, otherwise the condition may deteriorate further.
After a series of professional treatments, including adjusting medications, improving liver function, and controlling infections, the patient's mother's consciousness gradually returned to normal. At present, she is receiving further consolidation treatment in the Department of Gastroenterology of the Fourth People's Hospital of Changde City, and her physical condition has stabilized.
Popular science knowledge
Hepatic encephalopathy is a syndrome of central nervous system dysfunction based on metabolic disorders caused by severe liver disease and portosystemic shunts.
When the normal function or structure of the liver is severely damaged and the toxins in the body cannot be removed, it will cause abnormal changes in the patient's behavior, mood, sleep, speech or behavior, and in severe cases, consciousness disorders, behavior disorders and coma.
Hepatic encephalopathy is a common cause of death from severe liver disease, with a mortality rate of 80%~85%. Most cases of liver failure due to acute disease have a poor prognosis. The chronic course is slightly better than the acute course, but it is still severely life-threatening.
Hepatic encephalopathy has predisposing factors, including gastrointestinal bleeding, infection, electrolyte and acid-base disturbances, massive release of ascites, excessive diuresis, excessive protein intake, constipation, transjugular intrahepatic portosystemic shunt (TIPS), and the use of sedatives such as hypnotics.
Therefore, for patients with liver disease, especially those with liver cirrhosis and viral hepatitis, it is necessary to avoid the above triggers as much as possible in daily life to prevent the occurrence of hepatic encephalopathy.
Hunan Medical Chat Special Author: Wang Jianhua, Department of Gastroenterology, Fourth People's Hospital of Changde City
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