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Liver disease, cirrhosis: Why do test results come back negative?
I have had blood test, mri, ultrasound, ct scans and everything came back negative. Last year I had an ultrasound and FibroScan and it came back 60 percent fatty liver, and this year shows nothing? How can that be, I was a moderate drinker up until 3 months ago, I have been have extreme pain a round my belly button for 2 months, doctor thinks it’s portal hypertension, I can’t even touch it it’s so sensitive. My stool is light and doesn’t look like my system isn’t digesting right. Can you have cirrhosis with normal blood work and image. What should be my next step. Very concerned about my liver. Thanks
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I believe that doctors need physical access to your gallbladder in order to remove it. If that is so they must have had an opportunity to see your liver during your surgery with their eyes as the gallbladder is in very close proximity to the liver. On the other hand the scarred, shrinking & altered texture of a cirrhotic liver can not be missed by a qualified surgeon. I am not a doctor far less a liver specialist. How ever, it is my opinion that the viewing coupled with the negative results of the tests you did, probably is enough to rule out cirrhosis. I don't know if you can somehow have an intelligent estimate of the status of the related bile ducts & other tubes merely by seeing them physically. Nor, I should also say, can you have a definitive decision of the functional health of a liver by only viewing its surfaces, but for the qualified eyes that says a lot.
With those symptoms (though few) you need to take into serious consideration that a part of your gastrointestinal system (not necessarily the liver) had undergone some serious change. Any sudden change needs an urgent & persistent attention until it resolves itself or a diagnosis is reached.
Old post but replying for anybody who might see this as it could save a life.
LIVER FUNCTION TESTS ARE NOT ACCURATE WITH CIRRHOSIS. You must request scans if you are concerned
My mom had normal LFTs in February, her creatinine, B12 and D were low which are actually signs but they were put down to menopause. In Oct she passed from liver failure, less than 1 month after being admitted to hospital with her first symptoms.
The consultant told me that liver function blood tests can only test on healthy liver, so a person with lots of scarred liver would in theory have better results because they have less healthy liver to test on meaning lower results.
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1 Reaction@hellohihi - welcome to Mayo Clinic Connect. This is what Mayo Clinic recommends to diagnosis cirrhosis:
- Cirrhosis - Diagnosis https://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/cirrhosis/diagnosis-treatment/drc-20351492
I'm so sorry to hear about the loss of your mom. Sounds like things went extremely fast with her. How are you doing since she passed away?
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