Is fatty liver pain indicative of liver cirrhosis?

Written by Wu Hai Wu
Gastroenterology
Updated on June 28, 2025
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Pain from fatty liver does not necessarily mean that the patient has progressed to cirrhosis. To determine whether it is due to cirrhosis, imaging tests, assessments of liver fibrosis through four specific tests, or measuring the liver's transient elastography should be conducted. It is also necessary to consider the patient's clinical symptoms and physical examinations. Pain in the liver area due to fatty liver might be caused by an enlarged liver after fat accumulation, which can irritate the liver capsule and cause pain. This requires a specific analysis based on the individual's situation. Treatment for fatty liver should actively involve abstaining from alcohol, reducing blood lipids, and engaging in appropriate exercise.

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Written by Wu Hai Wu
Gastroenterology
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Why does cirrhosis cause increasing weight loss and what can be done about it?

The reason why patients with cirrhosis are becoming thinner might be due to the decreased protein synthesis function of the liver after cirrhosis, leading to progressively lesser protein in the body, which results in the patient becoming thinner. It could also be because cirrhosis leads to poor digestion and absorption in patients, thereby reducing their absorption capacity and causing them to lose weight. Under these circumstances, some medications can be used for treatment, such as the infusion of albumin to supplement plasma proteins in the body. It is also important to actively treat the underlying cause of cirrhosis. For example, in the case of alcoholic cirrhosis, active efforts to abstain from alcohol and rehabilitative treatment are necessary. If the cirrhosis is caused by chronic hepatitis B virus infection, antiviral treatment should be administered.

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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 Wu Hai Wu
Gastroenterology
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Will early portal hypertension from cirrhosis get better?

As for whether early portal hypertension caused by liver cirrhosis can improve, it depends on the cause of the liver cirrhosis and the effectiveness of the treatment for liver cirrhosis. If the liver cirrhosis is caused by viral hepatitis, then with proactive antiviral treatment, the early stage of liver cirrhosis might be reversible to some extent, and the portal hypertension might also be treatable. If it is due to some difficult-to-treat causes of liver cirrhosis, then the patient’s portal hypertension is likely hard to improve. For example, in cases of early liver cirrhosis caused by autoimmune liver disease, the liver cirrhosis will progressively worsen, and at this point, the portal hypertension cannot improve. Once portal hypertension occurs, it is necessary to regularly perform gastroscopy examinations.

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Written by Wu Hai Wu
Gastroenterology
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Is the surface of the liver smooth in the early stages of cirrhosis?

In the early stages of cirrhosis, it is not necessarily the case that the liver surface is very smooth; in patients with early cirrhosis, the liver surface can be uneven. Patients in the early stages of cirrhosis also need serious attention. They should undergo regular follow-up examinations, and it is important to identify the cause of the early cirrhosis. Based on different causes, appropriate treatment measures should be taken. For example, if the early cirrhosis is caused by chronic hepatitis B virus, antiviral treatment should be initiated as soon as possible. If it is due to alcohol, leading to early alcoholic cirrhosis, then it is crucial to quit drinking actively, and liver-protective treatments are also needed.

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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.