Does portal vein widen in the early stages of cirrhosis?

Written by Wu Hai Wu
Gastroenterology
Updated on May 16, 2025
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Patients with early-stage cirrhosis may also experience an enlargement of the portal vein. At this time, patients will need to complete related auxiliary examinations, such as electronic gastroscopy and abdominal color ultrasound, to rule out other complications caused by cirrhosis, such as esophageal and gastric variceal bleeding, or ascites associated with cirrhosis. It is crucial for early-stage cirrhosis patients to identify the cause as soon as possible and undergo etiological treatment, which sometimes can be very effective. For alcohol-related cirrhosis, abstaining from alcohol is necessary. If the cause is viral, such as chronic hepatitis B, antiviral treatments like entecavir are required. (Please use medication under the guidance of a doctor.)

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Written by Wu Hai Wu
Gastroenterology
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Will cirrhosis continue to progress if there are no symptoms?

Cirrhosis may not have symptoms, yet it can still progress. There are various causes of cirrhosis, such as viral hepatitis, alcoholic hepatitis, autoimmune hepatitis, drug-induced hepatitis, and fatty liver disease, among others. If the underlying causes are not removed, cirrhosis can continue to progress even without symptoms. For example, in chronic hepatitis B, if no effective antiviral treatment is administered, the patient may progress to decompensated cirrhosis in the absence of symptoms, which in severe cases, can lead to the development of liver cancer. Therefore, once cirrhosis is diagnosed, it is crucial to actively identify the cause and adopt different treatments according to the specific cause, such as abstaining from alcohol if the cirrhosis is alcohol-related.

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Written by Wu Hai Wu
Gastroenterology
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Does fatty liver occur in the early stages of cirrhosis?

Cirrhosis in its early stage does not necessarily involve fatty liver, as there are multiple causes for cirrhosis. Besides fatty liver causing steatohepatitis, which can lead to cirrhosis, other causes include viral hepatitis, drug-induced hepatitis, and autoimmune hepatitis, which can also lead to cirrhosis. Cirrhosis resulting from the above conditions will not involve fatty liver. However, if cirrhosis is caused by steatohepatitis, it is possible that fatty liver occurred in its early stage. Once fatty liver develops, proactive interventions are necessary, such as weight loss and medication, which might reverse fatty liver.

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Written by Wu Hai Wu
Gastroenterology
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What is good to eat after vomiting in the early stages of cirrhosis?

In the early stages of cirrhosis, after vomiting, one should eat light and easily digestible food. It's necessary to avoid spicy and stimulating food or rough, hard-to-digest food. Meanwhile, patients with cirrhosis should quit smoking and drinking alcohol, and also avoid drinking strong tea, coffee, etc. Once cirrhosis is discovered in a patient, targeted treatment should be administered, and comprehensive tests like color ultrasound and gastroscopy are needed to ascertain whether there are complications caused by cirrhosis, such as ascites or ruptured esophagogastric varices causing bleeding, among others.

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Written by Zhang Jian Kang
Infectious Disease
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Is hepatitis B cirrhosis contagious?

If hepatitis B is not well controlled, it can easily lead to the occurrence of cirrhosis. After the hepatitis B virus infects the human body, it causes repeated inflammatory damage to the liver, with recurring abnormalities in liver function. If during this period there is no formal antiviral treatment or lack of attention, it is very likely to lead to the development of cirrhosis. Once cirrhosis from hepatitis B occurs, it is generally irreversible. Cirrhosis due to hepatitis B is also an infectious disease, and its level of infectiousness mainly depends on the presence of the virus. If the viral load is positive, indicated by a positive HBV-DNA test, then it is infectious. If HBV-DNA is negative, then it is not infectious. Therefore, whether cirrhosis from hepatitis B is infectious primarily depends on the level of HBV-DNA.

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Written by Zhang Jian Kang
Infectious Disease
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Is hepatitis B cirrhosis serious?

After infection with the hepatitis B virus, it may cause repeated inflammatory damage to the liver. If hepatitis B is not well-controlled, it can lead to the development of liver cirrhosis. The symptoms of liver cirrhosis mainly manifest as repeated fatigue, poor appetite, yellowing of the eyes, yellow urine, and discomfort in the upper abdomen after eating, etc. If the cirrhosis due to hepatitis B is in a compensated stage, such as liver cirrhosis suggested by ultrasonography and mild abnormalities in liver function, and the symptoms are not very severe, this type of compensatory cirrhosis, relatively speaking, has a decent prognosis. With standard antiviral treatment, many patients can maintain a state of liver cirrhosis. However, if treatment is not further pursued and damage progresses, leading to decompensated liver cirrhosis, or if ascites has already developed, or even gastrointestinal bleeding occurs, then its prognosis is relatively poor, and this situation is very serious.