Blood Work & Fatty Liver

[mufasas-mom 170]

Hello - on our pre-op blood test workup - is one of the things on there show IF you have a fatty liver?? just curious, as to how the doctors would know that you have a fatty liver, just by your weight??

[mufasas-mom 170]

nevermind my friend Mr Google answered my question:

The most important blood tests regarding fatty liver diagnosis are two liver enzymes: SGOT (also called AST), and SGPT (also called ALT).

From my most recent blood work (7/2/12) my SGOT is 22 (range is 0-40) so I'm OK there - and the ALT is 29 (range 0-40) again I'm good to go - NO FATTY LIVER ISSUES!!

Hoping this will mean I won't have such a strict pre-op diet....I will bring this up on my final visit next Wednesday.

feeling relieved....

[Dooter 1,457]

Ya, I gave blood years ago and I got a letter saying they couldn't use it because of the fatty liver. Talk about a steel-toed boot to the ego! Gee, at least I got a cookie for my efforts...

[Marty McSkinnystein 342]

My blood tests were fine. They can't tell until they see it. Almost everyone does some form of liquid diet to shrink the liver. Fatty liver and fat on your body seem to go hand in hand.

[Silly Phylly 20]

You would think my bcbs would recognize fatty liver as a comorbidity for surgery, but apparently my doc does not think it is good enough. He says you have to have HTN, diabetes and sleep apnea along with any others. I'm Ms. 39.18 BMI and having to do the 6 month diet as a result. 40 BMI and I would have been good to go! Swift kick to the old gut and spirit!

[Silly Phylly 20]

By the way, mine was diagnosed by ultrasound and was having issues with abdominal swelling.

[lessofmeismore 1,405]

I was also diagnosed through ultrasound. All of my blood work came back as good.

[deb_fox 42]

My Surgeon orders a routine sonogram as part of the lab work prior to surgery. They told me that a Sonogram would detect a fatty liver. It was explained to me that the liver is a very fragile organ that bleeds easily. It is lifted and manipulated during the procedure and they need to know if it is fatty. Regardless, the liquid diet is to shrink the liver and make it as firm as possible for surgery for the safest procedure possible. This is why all of my Surgeon's patients remain on a 2 week liquid diet before surgery.