Hepatology
Hepatology
A hepatologist is a specialist in the branch of medicine called Hepatology, which includes the study of body parts such as the liver, the biliary tree, the gallbladder and the pancreas. A hepatologist manages disorders in these areas. Hepatology was traditionally a subspecialty of gastroenterology, but recent advances in the understanding of this subspecialty have made it a field of its own. Hepatologists deal most frequently with viral hepatitis and diseases related to alcohol. Hepatitis impacts millions of people worldwide and has been associated with a number of outcomes including Chronic disease, Cirrhosis occasionally, liver cancer. Particularly, hepatitis B and hepatitis C may cause liver cancers.
Some of the most common ailments that are assessed, diagnosed and managed by a hepatologist include:
- Diseases of the liver related to excess alcohol consumption, including fatty liver disease, liver cirrhosis and liver cancer.
- Viral hepatitis infections (hepatitis A, B, C and E). Over two billion individuals have been infected with hepatitis B at some point and around 350 million people are persistent carriers. With widespread vaccination and blood screening, the incidence of hepatitis B has significantly decreased.
- Drug overdose, particularly paracetamol overdose
- Jaundice
- Gastrointestinal bleeding caused by portal hypertension linked to liver injury
- Enzyme defects causing liver enlargement in children, also known of as liver storage diseases
- Some tropical infections such as hydatid cyst, kala-azar or schistosomiasis
- Liver transplantation
- Liver cancer
- Pancreatitis, usually when caused by alcohol consumption or gallstones
- Drug metabolism
- Damage to the pancreas or biliary tract caused by infection, cancer, alcohol, bleeding or obstruction.