Cirrhosis in dogs

Can suffer cirrhosis the dogs?

IF!

What is the Hepatica cirrhosis?
The hepática cirrhosis is a chronic disease and progressive of the liver where this one, diminishes of size, generally loses its spongy consistency and small nodules form. It is the final phase of many chronic diseases of the liver.
The cause of the cirrhosis agrees with the factors that can cause chronic hepático damage; then the chronic hepatitis evolves towards a cirrhosis.
The most frequent causes are the drug use (ej. acetaminofén, primidona, fenobarbital, griseofulvina, etc.), infectious diseases (infectious hepatitis canine, leptospirosis, etc.) and inmunomediadas. A clear racial predisposition in the Bedlington Terrier, West Highland White Terrier, Dobermann, Cocker Spaniel and Americano, Caniche and Labrador Retriever exists.

So important is the liver?
The liver is the person in charge of more than 500 vital functions. It processes all necessary the nutritious substances for the body, like proteins, glucose, vitamins, cholesterol and fats. Also it turns innocuous the potentially toxic substances, like ammonium, the nicotine, the drugs, the drugs and the injurious products derived from the digestion. The liver synthesizes the sanguineous coagulation factors and albumen, the most important protein of the blood.
The liver also is the person in charge of the elimination of the bilirrubina, a formed greenish yellow pigment from the degradation of the hemoglobina, the component that provides oxygen to red globules. The liver transforms the bilirrubina into a soluble water form, that next is secretada by the bile. The bile is a greenish liquid that takes place in the liver and that, in addition to bilirrubina, contains biliary salts, fatty acids, cholesterol and other substances. The bile moves from the liver to the biliary vesicle, where it is stored after a food; then it is secreted to the intestine to help to digest fats, because then it is possible to be understood the inumerables consequences that a hepática affection brings, certain?

What symptoms and signs produce?
The cirrhosis can be compensated (without symptoms) or decompensated (with symptoms). Everything depends on the degree of the hepático damage, in the initial stage the sintomatología so is varied as inespecífica: anorexy, loss of weight, lethargy, vomit, poliuria (they tinkle much) and polidipsia, (they take much water).
In agreement the hepática disfunción is more severe can be observed ictericia (yellow color of the skin), ascitis (collects of abdominal liquid by a diminution of proteins) and coagulopatías (appearance of bled spontaneous or with minimum blows).
The laboratory tests can show alteracione before the development of the cirrhosis, nevertheless in many occasions are indetectables.

Existen tests you diagnose?
If clear! , in veterinary medicine we counted on x-rays (in general there are microhepatías) and ecográficos studies.
The biochemical tests used to evaluate the liver are very useful and include hepáticas enzyme measurement in blood (ALT, AST, FA, GGT) and analysis of blood to measure biliary bilirrubina, acids, albumen, glucose, NUS, factors of the coagulation, etc?.

Tiene cures or treatment?
It does not exist treatment for the cirrhosis but treatment, consists of eliminating drugs (medicacamentos), agents toxic, or infectious who have caused their appearance and to control gastric complications like ascitis, encefalopatía, ulcers, coagulopatías and infections that are associated to the generalized hepática insufficiency.
If this is able to determine the cause of the cirrhosis it must be treated and when she is the progression possible to eliminate it, to prevent a future damage and to make but slow of the cirrhosis.
This last one has been obtained with the antifibróticas drug aid like the colchicina, prednisona and the penicillamina.
Also it is important to the change of feeding: low commercial protein food or homemade diet with meat of soya, cooked egg, fish, desgrasado chicken, white rice cooked, cooked liver, cheese cottage and garlic like condimento.

Is serious Doctor?
The prognosis depends on the extension and severity of the histopatológicos changes that are observed the biopsy. Unfortunately in most of the cases when the clinical signs and the findings in the laboratory tests are apparent it is because the histopatólogicos changes estan very advanced. Nowadays better tests and studies of diagnosis that can make us notice the hepáticas affections in early stages, with which exist more and improves the prognosis.

Bibliography

Author: MV Adelaida A. Goldman

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