Alcohol-induced hepatitis occurs when the liver becomes inflamed due to alcohol consumption. Alcohol-induced hepatitis, which may also be called alcoholic hepatitis, should not be confused with cirrhosis of the liver because they’re not exactly the same thing. But alcoholic hepatitis is considered to be an early stage of alcoholic liver disease.
Not all heavy drinkers get alcohol-induced hepatitis. On the other hand, sometimes people who drink moderately are afflicted.
It’s possible to recover from alcoholic hepatitis if you stop drinking. But once you have it, continued use of alcohol greatly increases your risk for cirrhosis and then liver failure. Once your liver fails, your only chance for survival is a liver transplant.
Researchers haven’t been able to determine exactly why alcohol consumption can lead to hepatitis, but they’ve isolated some possibilities. They know that when you drink alcohol, certain toxic substances are produced in your liver. These substances trigger irritation, which results in inflammation. This irritation destroys liver cells, causing healthy tissue to replaced by scar tissue. This scarring process is the very definition of cirrhosis. Cirrhosis is the last stage of alcoholic liver disease.
It’s also still a mystery why some heavy alcohol users never develop alcoholic hepatitis or cirrhosis, while some moderate drinkers do. This fact leads researchers to theorize that other factors besides the use of alcohol may influence who gets the disease.
Heredity could play a role too. Mutations affecting metabolism could be one of the reasons for the selective nature of the disorder.
If you already have liver trouble, and you drink, it appears you have a higher risk of developing alcoholic hepatitis. This is especially true if you have hemochromotosis, a disease in which too much iron accumulates in the body.
Malnutrition may be another factor that influences who gets alcohol-induced hepatitis. Heavy drinkers often have poor dietary and nutritional habits, and may even substitute alcohol for food sometimes. Toxic byproducts in alcohol limit the digestive processes. Once again, this could result in damage to liver cells.
As with many other liver problems, there are no symptoms in the early stages of alcohol-induced hepatitis. But as the disease gets worse, symptoms become more prominent.
Symptoms vary but often include:
- abdominal pain and tenderness
- abnormal thirst and a dry mouth
- ascites, or fluid accumulation in the abdominal area
- lapses of memory and cognitive problems mixed with confusion
- occasional fevers and vomiting, sometimes with blood
- unusual fatigue, weakness and dizziness
- weight gain despite a lack of appetite
- paleness or yellowish skin and eyes that could be indicate jaundice
Symptoms of alcoholic hepatitis are likely to get worse if you consume a lot of alcohol in a short time, or indulge in binge drinking.
Anyone who experiences these symptoms should see a doctor as soon as possible because alcohol-induced hepatitis may lead to a variety of dangerous medical conditions, including gastrointestinal bleeding.