You Are Here » Miscellaneous » Alcoholic Liver Disease » Diagnosing Alcoholic Liver Disease
Alcoholic Liver Disease
Contents of this Article
Diagnosing Alcoholic Liver Disease
Diagnosing Alcoholic Liver Disease (ALD) is a challenge. A history of heavy alcohol use along with certain physical signs and positive laboratory tests for liver disease are the best indicators of disease.
Alcohol dependence is not necessarily a prerequisite for ALD, and ALD can be difficult to diagnose because patients often minimize or deny their alcohol abuse. Even more confounding is the fact that physical exams and lab findings may not specifically point to ALD.
Diagnosis typically relies on laboratory tests of three liver enzymes:
1) Gamma-glutamyltransferase (GGT)
2) Aspartate aminotransferase (AST)
3) Alanine aminotransferase (ALT)
Liver disease is the most likely diagnosis if the Aspartate aminotransferase (AST) level is more than twice that of Alanine aminotransferase (ALT), a ratio some studies have found in more than 80 percent of alcoholic liver disease patients.
An elevated level of the liver enzyme Gamma-glutamyltransferase (GGT) is another gauge of heavy alcohol use and liver injury.
Of the three enzymes, Gamma-glutamyltransferase (GGT) is the best indicator of excessive alcohol consumption, but Gamma-glutamyltransferase (GGT) is present in many organs and is increased by other drugs as well, so high Gamma-glutamyltransferase (GGT) levels do not necessarily mean the patient is abusing alcohol.
Back To Top
References:
National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism (NIAAA)
January 2005
pubs.niaaa.nih.gov
|