Premature Birth Complications: Short and Long-Term Health Effects
Liver Pain
The liver has no pain receptors. However, certain conditions, such as cirrhosis of an abscess, can cause general abdominal pain or pain in other areas like the back or shoulders.
Many times, we get help when things hurt. But when it comes to the liver, it can be difficult to pinpoint a source of pain and know when to see a doctor.
Liver pain is usually generalized and not focused on a specific area. This article will explore what liver pain can feel like, what types of problems cause liver pain, and what you should do if you suspect there's a problem with your liver.
Your liver is located near the bottom of your rib cage and is tilted slightly to take up more space on the right side of your abdomen than your left. Your liver lies just above your stomach and the small intestine.
Liver pain can be difficult to diagnose because it can take many forms. Also, your liver doesn't actually contain any nerves that sense pain, so discomfort is usually the result of inflammation or damage to surrounding tissues.
More than 80% of people with cirrhosis (a condition involving scarring of the liver) report pain and it's usually described as dull or throbbing. This pain is often reported generally in the abdomen, but people with cirrhosis may also complain of pain in the back, shoulders, and large joints.
Liver disease can be a source of referred pain, in which discomfort is noticed in an area other than where the actual problem is. The shoulders and neck are common sites of pain referred from the liver.
Liver disease can also cause inflammation throughout the body, leading to a general feeling of discomfort. Ascites, or a buildup of fluid in the abdomen caused by liver disease, can lead to sharp pain or even pain when breathing.
Liver pain can signal problems in the liver itself or in other parts of the body. Conditions that directly affect the liver and can lead to pain include:
Sometimes, liver damage generates pain in other parts of the body. Since the liver has no pain receptors, surrounding tissues and other areas of the body, like the neck and shoulders, may hurt.
Many people have a difficult time pinpointing the location of pain associated with liver disease since it often strikes the peritoneum. This is a membrane that lines the abdominal wall and the organs within it.
Fitz Hugh Curtis syndrome is one example of a complicated disease that can affect the liver and cause generalized abdominal pain.
This rare condition occurs mostly in women and can be a complication of pelvic inflammatory disease. It affects the peritoneum and the tissues around the liver. People with this condition usually report sudden, severe pain in the upper right portion of the abdomen, shoulder, and right arm.
Pain isn't the only symptom you might experience with liver disease. Since your liver produces and stores vital nutrients and filters out toxins, you'll notice all kinds of problems if this vital organ isn't doing its job.
Some non-pain-related symptoms that are common with liver disease include:
However, there are some cases where you might have liver damage but not experience any noticeable symptoms. In this case, the damage might become evident through a blood test. The signs are usually certain elevated enzymes in your blood, as well as bilirubin and albumin, which are elevated and decreased, respectively.
Alcohol use is one of the main risk factors associated with liver disease. The liver filters all kinds of harmful substances that run through your body. This includes things like byproducts of the foods you eat, medications, and alcohol.
You can lower your risk of developing liver disease by doing things like:
There are also a number of diseases that can cause liver damage, so it's a good idea to make sure you're vaccinated, when possible, against things like hepatitis A virus and hepatitis B virus. You should also get screened for hepatitis C, liver cancer, and diabetes.
It can be difficult to spot the early signs of liver disease. Fatigue is the most common early symptom, and this symptom can be linked to many conditions and lifestyle factors.
Often, liver disease isn't suspected until you develop later symptoms of the disease like easy bruising, jaundice, itching, or abdominal pain. If you experience the following symptoms, you could be in acute liver failure, and you should make an appointment with a doctor or find immediate care:
The most important part of protecting the health of your liver is to be open with your doctor about all medications you take, what you eat, and how much you drink. These can all factor into your risk of developing liver disease.
Talk with a doctor if you're making choices that could affect your liver health so that you can get help, as well as appropriate vaccinations and screenings.
If you have a family history of liver conditions or are at risk of developing liver disease, your doctor may want to see you regularly for an overall physical examination and blood work. Examinations for liver disease may include things like:
You may require specialized testing and monitoring from a gastroenterologist, a healthcare professional who specializes in liver and digestive system conditions.
Examples of tests that specifically check the liver may include transient elastography, which can measure the stiffness of your liver and check for cirrhotic scarring.
How your liver pain is treated will depend on what's causing the pain. If your liver pain is the result of short-term problems with your diet or alcohol use, the following home remedies can help:
If your symptoms continue for several hours or days, call a doctor. You may need additional treatment. The liver is able to repair itself, so early action and lifestyle changes may allow you to reverse some liver damage.
Avoid taking over-the-counter pain medications like acetaminophen (Tylenol) or ibuprofen (Motrin, Advil) to treat your liver pain. These medications are processed through your liver and could make your pain — and your overall liver health — even worse.
That said, it's worth noting that acetaminophen is more commonly associated with liver damage compared to ibuprofen. For this reason, your healthcare professional may recommend you take a nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drug (NSAID) like ibuprofen, depending on the cause of your pain.
In most cases, a doctor will prescribe a regimen that includes a balanced diet and exercise, as well as medications for specific liver problems. These medications could include:
In extreme cases of liver disease, liver dialysis (used to purify your blood) or a liver transplant may be required. Note that kidney dialysis is more common than liver dialysis as the latter procedure is relatively new.
Can liver inflammation go away?Whether or not you can get rid of liver inflammation depends on the cause. However, in many cases, if you're diagnosed early, treatment can reverse the damage as the liver is able to heal itself.
Is liver pain worse when lying down?Liver pain can be worse lying down depending on the cause. For example, this can happen if there's irritation to your peritoneum, which is the thin layer of tissue covering your abdomen and most of its organs. In this case, you may benefit from sleeping while seated in a chair or lying at an incline.
How do I differentiate gallbladder from liver pain?It can be easy to confuse pain in the gallbladder and liver because these organs are located next to each other in the upper right abdomen. However, gallbladder pain is often sharp and spreads outwards, while liver pain tends to be a constant dull ache. Gallbladder pain might also be more concentrated in the upper right abdomen, whereas liver pain might feel more widespread.
The liver isn't one of the most well-understood organs, but it's one of the most important. From filtering your blood to protecting you from infection, the liver performs a number of vital functions.
While your liver doesn't have pain cells, problems in the liver can cause pain or discomfort in other places — usually throughout the abdomen.
If you have pain in the upper right portion of your abdomen, shoulder pain, or other general abdominal discomforts that don't go away, make an appointment to see a doctor. You have a good chance of reversing liver disease if you catch it and make changes early.
Targeted Liver Cancer Treatment May Help Cut Side Effects
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Drug-loaded 3D printed films could change cancer treatments forever as world-first research from the University of South Australia shows that new films not only kill more than 80% of liver cancer cells but could also significantly reduce recurrence rates while minimising systematic toxicities of traditional chemotherapy.
Created from gels that are loaded with tailored doses of anti-cancer drugs 5-fluorouracil (5FU) and cisplatin (Cis), the 3D printed films are placed at the exact surgical site where a cancer has been removed, localising drugs to the affected area to treat possible residual cancer cells, and limit undesirable side effects of traditional chemotherapy.
Initially designed as an adjuvant treatment for liver cancer, the precision-cut films also have the potential to treat ovarian cancer, head and neck cancer and many other cancers, where 5FU and Cis have already proven successful.
Every year, more than 800,000 people are diagnosed with this cancer throughout the world. Globally, liver cancer is the third cause of cancer death with a 75% mortality rate.
UniSA researcher Dr Souha Youssef says the novel films have the potential to revolutionise liver cancer treatments.
Subscribe to Technology Networks' daily newsletter, delivering breaking science news straight to your inbox every day.
Subscribe for FREE "Despite medical strides, liver cancer remains a highly aggressive and deadly form of cancer with recurrence rates of up to 70%," Dr Youssef says."The main treatment protocol requires the surgical removal of the tumour followed by chemotherapy, which while crucial to prevent relapse, is very challenging due to its debilitating side effects.
"There are striking statistics that show how many patients choose to discontinue treatment due to its aggressiveness and how it is affecting their quality of life.
"To bridge this gap, we developed a post-surgery chemotherapy-loaded film, that releases 5-fluorouracil and cisplatin directly into the surgical cavity. This targeted approach releases the drugs into the exact cavity and lower amounts into the bloodstream which otherwise cause serious side effect at high doses."
Using state-of-the-art 3D printers, researchers have been able to tailor treatment protocols for each patient, with in-lab tests exerting a superior response rate in the treatment of liver cancer.
Senior researcher and co-director of UniSA's Centre for Pharmaceutical Innovation, Professor Sanjay Garg, says a tailored approach to cancer treatment is essential for improving patient outcomes.
"Due to the heterogeneous nature of cancer, a one-size-fits-all approach is no longer suitable," Prof Garg says.
"With a simple touch of a button, 3D printers enable endless opportunities to modulate drug release profiles, customise film geometry, and add or remove active ingredients based on individual needs.
"Our films also demonstrate controlled drug release lasting up to 23 days, ensuring sustained treatment benefits.
"Importantly, the biodegradable nature of the films adds a significant advantage of eliminating the need for surgical removal post-treatment, making it a more convenient and patient-friendly option for liver cancer therapy."
The research team will soon move into preclinical trials to establish a crucial correlation between tumour size and the optimal dosing and release profile, setting the stage for potential clinical trials in the future.
Reference: Youssef SH, Ganesan R, Amirmostofian M, et al. Printing a cure: A tailored solution for localized drug delivery in liver cancer treatment. Int J Pharmaceut. 2024;651:123790. Doi: 10.1016/j.Ijpharm.2024.123790
This article has been republished from the following materials. Note: material may have been edited for length and content. For further information, please contact the cited source.
Gallbladder Pain: Reasons Why Your Belly Hurts
Your gallbladder is a small, pear-shaped organ that's tucked below your liver. You probably don't think much about it -- until it hurts.
Don't ignore gallbladder pain. Only a doctor can properly diagnose what's causing it, provide treatment, and help you avoid further complications. (Photo Credit: WebMD)
The gallbladder stores and releases bile, a greenish-colored fluid that helps your body digest fats. Whenever you eat, your gallbladder contracts and releases the bile. The bile then flows to your small intestine, the duodenum.
When something goes wrong with your gallbladder or the bile ducts, the upper right side of your abdomen may hurt. You may also feel:
Other common symptoms include yellow skin and eyes (known as jaundice), weight loss, and color changes in your urine or bowel movements.
You have several organs in your abdomen, and if you have pain in that area, it can be challenging to figure out what's causing it. Here are some conditions that could mimic gallbladder pain:
Pancreatitis. Your pancreas is in the back of your abdomen, near the duodenum. If it's inflamed, it can cause abdominal pain similar to gallbladder pain. The main difference, however, is that with pancreatitis, you usually also have nausea, vomiting, and unexplained weight loss. Your heart may race and your bowel movements may be foul-smelling.
Kidney stones. Although your kidneys are at the back, kidney stones can cause abdominal pain as well as back pain. You may notice that your urine is a different color than usual (red, brown, or pink), and it may be cloudy or foul-smelling.
Stomach ulcers. Pain in your stomach from an ulcer may feel like gallbladder pain, but you would also probably feel bloated. You may also have heartburn and burp a lot.
Inflammatory bowel disease, or IBD (Crohn's disease or colitis). IBD can cause abdominal pain, but it usually causes diarrhea too. You may see blood in your bowel movements and lose weight unintentionally.
Gastroenteritis. This infection in your gut, sometimes called stomach flu, can cause the same types of symptoms as gallbladder pain, except it usually also causes diarrhea, nausea, vomiting, and cramping.
There are several reasons why you may feel gallbladder pain. They include:
Gallstones
This is the top reason for gallbladder pain. You get them when bile clumps together into hard masses. Gallstones can vary in size, ranging from tiny specks to as large as a golf ball. If they get big enough, these stones can block bile from flowing out. That can lead to a gallstone attack, which may feel like a sudden pain in the upper right part of your belly.
These attacks often happen after a big steak dinner or other fatty meals, and they can last many hours. But most people who have gallstones don't know it. These "silent" stones don't cause problems in your organs. Diagnostic tests such as ultrasound, magnetic resonance cholangiopancreatography (MRCP), endoscopic retrograde cholangiopancreatography (ERCP), blood tests, or other imaging tests can show if you have gallstones. Your doctor can get rid of them with surgery, medication, or even shockwaves.
Bile duct stones
These are either gallstones that get stuck in your bile ducts or stones that form there. They may give you no trouble until they block the bile ducts. Then you might have serious pain in your belly that comes and goes for hours at a time. Your skin and eyes might turn yellow, and you might feel like throwing up. Your doctor can remove the bile duct stones by threading an endoscope (a thin tube with a light at the end) through your mouth down to the bile ducts.
Perforated gallbladder
This can happen when your gallstones over time cause a hole in the walls of your organ. It's rare, but it can be deadly. The upper right part of your belly might hurt. You also may have a high fever, nausea, and vomiting. You'll need medical treatment or surgery right away.
Gallbladder abscess(empyema)
Empyema of the gallbladder is caused by an infection from the buildup of bile resulting from duct obstruction (including gallstones). The infection may resist treatment with antibiotics, and the abscess may need to be drained. A serious abscess can result in a tear, allowing the infection to enter the inside lining of the abdomen (peritonitis).
Gallbladder inflammation
Also called cholecystitis, gallbladder inflammation can happen for several reasons, including trauma, illness, infection, or tumors. It may also result from bile buildup in your gallbladder due to gallstones. Less often, other culprits can include certain bacteria or problems in your bile ducts. When your gallbladder gets inflamed and swollen, symptoms include pain in your belly, including the area just above your stomach. You also may feel an ache in your back or right shoulder blade.
Usually, an ultrasound and other imaging tests can diagnose it. You may need surgery to remove your gallbladder. (Your body can work fine without it.) Without treatment, the organ can burst.
Primary sclerosing cholangitis (PSC)
PSC is a liver disease that damages your bile ducts. It's progressive, meaning it gets worse over time. About 4 out of 5 people who have PSC also have inflammatory bowel disease. PSC can lead to liver failure. Many people have no symptoms. You might feel tired or have pain in the upper right side of your abdomen or itchy skin. This condition is often found when routine blood tests show your liver isn't working right.
Gallbladder cancer
Gallbladder cancer is rare and hard to diagnose. More often than not, you won't have symptoms until the cancer has spread. Signs may include abdominal pain, especially on the upper right side, as well as weight loss, jaundice, and belly bloating. A family history of gallstones; being older, female, or obese; and eating unhealthy foods can make you more likely to get cancer in the gallbladder.
Bile duct cancer
You may not have symptoms in the early stages of this cancer. If you do, it's often because the bile duct is blocked. Jaundice is the most common symptom, along with itchy skin and light-colored or greasy poop. If your tumors are big enough, you may have belly pain, especially below your ribs on the right side. Surgery gives you the best chance at a cure. But most bile duct cancers are found too late for that. In that case, you may need radiation or chemotherapy to shrink the tumors first.
Bile duct scars
Narrowed bile ducts from scar tissue can keep the bile from flowing out of your liver and gallbladder into the small intestine. That can make you hurt on the right side of your abdomen where the organs are. You also might feel itchy or tired, have a lack of appetite, and get jaundice, night sweats, or fever.
Several things can cause the scars, including bile duct stones, injury, infections, alcohol and drugs. Your doctor can confirm it with a procedure called endoscopic retrograde cholangiopancreatography (ERCP), which gives them an inside peek into your bile and pancreatic ducts.
Some of the more minor complications include:
More serious complications of gallbladder disease include:
Gallbladder pain treatment depends on what's causing the pain in the first place. If you think you have gallbladder pain, you should speak with your doctor as soon as possible. This is important so you can be diagnosed as early as possible to prevent complications.
In the meantime, you may want to try some home treatments to ease the gallbladder pain. You can:
Once you've seen your doctor, other options for gallbladder pain treatment may be:
If these treatments don't work or aren't an option, your doctor may refer you to a surgeon for surgery to remove your gallbladder.
If you have a lot of gallstones that can't be removed, your gallbladder is inflamed or infected (called cholecystitis), or you have cancer, you might need a gallbladder removal (cholecystectomy).
This surgery can be done in one of three ways:
Laparoscopic. Most cholecystectomies are done this way now because it's easier on the patient and has fewer complications. Instead of one large incision (cut), laparoscopic surgery is done through three or four small incisions. Using long-handled tools, one that has a camera on the end (laparoscope), the surgeon can look on a screen to see inside the abdomen and remove the gallbladder through one of the incisions. A laparoscopic cholecystectomy is called a minimally invasive surgery.
Open. Before laparoscopic gallbladder removal, open surgeries were the only way to remove the gallbladder. Now, they're done only if the gallbladder disease is too complicated or if your doctor suspects you may have cancer. Your surgeon would make one large incision, about 4-6 inches long, to get to your gallbladder. Recovery from this type of surgery takes longer.
Robotic. A newer way to remove a gallbladder, robotic surgery is another type of minimally invasive surgery. Long-handled surgical tools and a camera are inserted in small incisions, just like with laparoscopic surgery. However, instead of the surgeon using the tools, the tools are controlled by the surgeon at a computer console. The advantage of robotic surgery is that the tools can bend and move in ways a surgeon's hands can't.
Gallbladder pain after removal
You may expect to not have gallbladder pain after it's been removed, but there is a condition called post-cholecystectomy syndrome that affects up to 40% of people who have the surgery.
If you have this syndrome, you may feel much like you did before the surgery. You can have abdominal pain, nausea, and vomiting. Doctors don't know for sure what causes the syndrome. But many think it's caused by bile that leaks into the stomach and the surrounding area, or stones that are still in the bile ducts. The symptoms don't last long for most people, but they can last longer (for many months) in a few. If it's too severe or lasts long, you may need another surgery so the doctor can find out what's causing the pain.
Lifestyle changes can help keep your gallbladder healthy.
Refresh your diet. Here are some recommendations:
Eat more:
Try to cut back on foods that may cause gallbladder pain:
Problems with your gallbladder often can be traced back to too much cholesterol -- a fat from meat, dairy, and other animal sources. But don't be afraid of good unsaturated fats from foods such as olive and canola oil, salmon and other fatty fish, and nuts.
Exercise regularly. Aim for 30 minutes of brisk walking and other moderate workouts every day.
Keep a healthy weight. If you're heavy, aim to lose pounds slowly and avoid fasting. Otherwise, it can raise the level of cholesterol in your gallbladder.
Problems with your gallbladder or bile ducts should be checked out. Talk to your doctor right away if you:
If you had gallbladder surgery, call your doctor if you:
Gallbladder pain can have several causes. Some people can manage or reduce how often they have gallbladder pain by changing their diet and exercising. Others may need surgery to remove their gallbladder. Contact your doctor if you have gallbladder pain so you can be diagnosed and treated as early as possible, possibly avoiding any complications.
What will the ER do for gallbladder pain?
If your pain is severe, you should be checked as soon as possible to rule out something more serious and to make you more comfortable. The emergency room doctor will likely do an ultrasound to look for stones and to check how big your gallbladder is. If necessary, your doctor may also order other imaging tests, such as a CT scan, MRI, or hepatobiliary iminodiacetic acid (HIDA) scan to get a view of what is going on inside.
How do I know if my pain is from my gallbladder?
Only a doctor can confirm if you're having pain from your gallbladder. There are other conditions that may mimic gallbladder pain. So, it's important to see your doctor as soon as possible if you are having gallbladder pain.
What does a gallstone attack feel like?
Gallstones can cause sudden and severe pain. The duration of the gallbladder pain attacks may vary, ranging from as short as 30 minutes to several hours long. You might feel the pain from gallstones in the upper mid-back (between the shoulder blades), in the right shoulder, or the upper part of the right side of your abdomen. Other symptoms include nausea and vomiting.
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