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Primary Biliary Cholangitis and Autoimmune Hepatitis
Transplants | Last Active: Oct 3, 2021 | Replies (72)Comment receiving replies
Hello, I have PBC with AI Overlap and am trying to learn more about it. I have suffered with this, among other autoimmune diseases, for years now and I have tried from time of diagnosis to educate myself about something I have never heard of. I've learned that Mayo Clinic is the "gold standard" and highest bar that other medical facilities are compared to so I came here to learn more. I read on Mayo Clinic's Patient Care & Health Information > Diseases & Conditions: Liver Disease, that there are several risk factors that may increase your risk of liver disease, including exposure to certain chemicals or toxins. Where does one find information about which certain chemicals and toxins these are and how they affect the liver? Thank you.
Replies to "Hello, I have PBC with AI Overlap and am trying to learn more about it. I..."
@cinnamon215, I am sorry to hear of your suffering with several autoimmune conditions. I have vitiligo, an autoimmune skin condition, and that is what caused my doctors to look at possibility of my liver disease also being autoimmune related. I was eventually diagnosed with a different disease that affects the bile ducts, Primary Sclerosing Cholangitis(PSC) and received a successful transplant in 2009.
I especially like the information that @johnbishop shared about Common toxins to avoid (— http://loveyourliver.com.au/common-toxins-to-avoid ) because it is directly related to everyday living. It is my understanding that there is research being done to look at the environmental and chemical toxins.
Since you are new to PBC, I want to share this information about Primary Biliary Cholangitis(PBC) from Mayo Clinic Patient Care & Health Information>Diseases & Conditions. It says that, "Primary biliary cholangitis is considered an autoimmune disease, which means your body's immune system is mistakenly attacking healthy cells and tissue. Researchers think a combination of genetic and environmental factors triggers the disease. It usually develops slowly. Medication can slow liver damage, especially if treatment begins early."
https://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/primary-biliary-cholangitis-pbc/symptoms-causes/syc-20376874
I hope that this helps give you a perspective on this disease.
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Hello @cinnamon215, I know it's difficult dealing with multiple autoimmune diseases and especially when there are a lot of unknowns. I'm really glad to see that you are learning as much as you can about your health condition and being a strong advocate for your health. There is another discussion on Connect that is similar to yours where your post may get much more visibility. I'm tagging our moderator @ethanmcconkey to see if he is able to move your post to the following discussion where you can meet other members discussing Primary Biliary Cholangitis and Autoimmune Hepatitis.
> Groups > Transplants > Primary Biliary Cholangitis and Autoimmune Hepatitis
-- https://connect.mayoclinic.org/discussion/primay-biliary-cholagitis-and-autoimmune-hepattitis/
Here are a few links that may help answer your question - which chemicals and toxins affect the liver.
NIH - Toxic hepatitis in occupational exposure to solvents
-- https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3374978/
Industrial Chemicals Associated with Toxic Hepatitis
-- https://www.haz-map.com/heptox1.htm
Common toxins to avoid
-- http://loveyourliver.com.au/common-toxins-to-avoid
Do you think you may have been exposed to any hazardous chemicals or toxins?