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Many liver diseases develop asymptomatically for a long time, or the symptoms are non-specific and escape our attention. As a result, we report to the doctor too late, when the advancement of the disease prevents effective help.
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1/ 10 Symptoms of liver disease
Symptoms of liver disease can take many forms. Some of them can be seen by closely observing your skin. It is worth knowing the typical skin changes that occur in the course of liver diseases in order to be able to start effective treatment as soon as possible. We present the most common skin manifestations of liver diseases.
2/ 10 Yellow tufts
Yellow tufts are soft, subcutaneous cholesterol deposits that are lumpy, well-delimited, multiple, yellow or orange in color. They can be up to 7 cm in size, but are usually much smaller, often barely visible. They are located in the perinasal area of the eye. Often such changes can be observed not only in the eye area, but also in the vicinity of joints (elbow and knee joints), tendons, hands, feet and buttocks. The lesions with such a location are called the jaundice. Their presence may indicate familial hypercholesterolaemia.
3/ 10 Discoloration
Disturbances in pigment distribution can be located around the mouth, eyes and hands, as well as in areas of the body exposed to sunlight. Their metallic, brown color, caused by the increased production of melanin and accumulation of haemosiderin, indicates haemochromatosis. Some people have discoloration on the mucous membranes of the cheeks and conjunctiva.
4/ 10 Vascular spiders
These are dilated skin arterioles that resemble a spider. They can be small, not exceeding a few millimeters in size. But they can also reach a size of several centimeters. When the spider is pressed, the blood drains and it disappears for a while, and when the pressure is released, the change becomes clearly visible again. The typical location of spider veins is the neck, shoulders and chest. It should also be remembered that spider veins often appear during pregnancy and during the use of HRT. In other people, they may be a sign of a secretly developing liver disease.
5/ 10 Jaundice
The yellowing of the skin is the result of an increase in the amount of bilirubin (a yellow-orange pigment produced by heme breakdown) in the blood. The degree of yellowing of the skin depends on the concentration of bilirubin, and ranges from slightly yellow in mild hyperbilirubinemia to brown in severe jaundice. Characteristically, yellowness is more intense in the upper than lower parts of the body.
6/ 10 Itchy skin
This is the most common and worrying symptom of liver disease. The itching may be transient or prolonged and may vary in intensity, from mild to severe. Characteristic of liver diseases is itching of the entire body, with the greatest intensity in the arms and feet.
7/ 10 Palmar erythema
An erythema localized on the hands may indicate cirrhosis of the liver, especially if the hands are warm. It may be accompanied by erythema of the sole of the foot. A rare symptom of portal circulation is the so-called a symptom of Medusa’s head, which manifests itself in the form of a specific widening of the veins around the navel. The name of this symptom comes from the mythological Medusa, who had snakes instead of hair. In people with liver disease, there are numerous, tortuous vessels that radiate from the area around the navel.
8/ 10 Loss of hair
Most often it affects the forearms, armpits and pubic hair in both sexes. Men also experience less facial hair, loss of libido, and sometimes testicular atrophy and gynecomastia. In some people, liver disease may be misdiagnosed as Cushing’s syndrome because of the similarity of clinical symptoms: moon-shaped face, abdominal obesity, and abdominal stretch marks.
9/ 10 Banknote leather
The name refers to the distinctive look of the leather that resembles the paper used to make banknotes. A dry and wrinkled skin with branching telangiectasias is characteristic of alcoholic cirrhosis. Dupuytren’s contracture is also common. It is a progressive condition that causes lumps in the hand and fingers. Over time, your fingers may bend towards the inside of your hand.
10/ 10 Nail plate changes
The most common is the bulging and thickening of the nail plate, its longitudinal furrow and white discoloration of the plate part. If the liver disease lasts for many years, the nail plates may become watch-shaped. The nail plates are then round and convex, resembling watch glass.