Re: father has liver disease

[Guest guest]

Sadly, , there aren't really specific medications or treatments for

cirrhosis if your father is not a candidate for a transplant.

The usual course of treatment involves treating the symptoms (like giving

your father lactulose to help ease constipation and/or bind the ammonia in

the blood to reduce/avoid neuropsychiatric abnormalities caused by hepatic

encephalopathy).

Beyond that, patients are generally advised to:

-- follow good dietary and general health practices (balanced diet, moderate

exercise)

-- avoid substances which may damage the liver (e.g., alcohol, certain over

the counter and prescription medications)

-- limit salt intake

-- limit protein intake

These guidelines aren't always easy to follow. As an example, someone who

feels ill sometimes can't or doesn't want to eat good, balanced meals and

take moderate exercise.

See if you can make an appointment to sit down with your father's doctor and

ask questions like, Should he avoid certain medications? If he has trouble

eating, is it OK for him to use a nutritional supplement like Ensure or

Boost? How much salt is OK?

Hope you find this helpful.

Dorothy