Liver Cirrhosis

What is Liver Cirrhosis?

Liver cirrhosis occurs when scar tissue replaces healthy liver tissue, preventing the liver from working normally. Cirrhosis is a long-term disease that can cause serious problems because the liver has so many functions, including removing waste from the body, making bile to help digest food, storing sugar that the body uses for energy, and making new proteins.

Cirrhosis slows the flow of blood through the liver. In severe cases, liver failure occurs, and the liver stops working altogether.

Symptoms of Liver Cirrhosis

Symptoms may include:

Fluid buildup in the belly (ascites)
Vomiting blood
Gallstones
Itching
Yellowing of the skin and eyes (jaundice)
Kidney failure
Muscle loss
Loss of appetite
Easy bruising
Spider-like veins in the skin
Low energy and weakness
Weight loss
Confusion as toxins build up in the blood

The symptoms of cirrhosis may look like other health problems. Always see your care provider to be sure.

Schedule an appointment with a UR Medicine provider.

Call (585) 275-4711

UR Medicine's Treatments for Liver Cirrhosis

Diagnosing cirrhosis begins with a physical exam. After that, you blood tests, liver biopsy, or other tests might be needed.

Treatment might begin with removing the trigger, such as treating a viral infection or quitting alcohol consumption.

In many cases, you may be able to delay or stop any more liver damage. Your treatment can include:

Eating a healthy diet, low in sodium
Not using alcohol or illegal drugs
Managing any health problems that happen because of cirrhosis

If you have severe cirrhosis, treatment can’t control other problems. A liver transplant might be needed. Other treatments may be specific to your cause of cirrhosis, such as controlling excessive iron or copper levels or using immune suppressing medicines.

What Sets Us Apart?

We offer a complete range of liver disease services, including both transplant and non-transplant hepatology. We’re the only liver transplant center in the region.

We regularly serve as a valuable second (and even third and fourth) opinion resource for patients referred from far and wide. Other area hospitals and gastroenterologists often depend on our physicians to handle their most complex and challenging cases.

As a multidisciplinary center, we provide all the specialists you might need—including hepatologists, oncologists, rheumatologists and others—without having to send you to another center.

Our team-based decision-making approach expedites your care while involving doctors from many different disciplines. We’re able to see patients rapidly, often the very next day.

And our doctors make a practice of following up with on patients, often calling them between appointments.