Liver is a vital organ in our body. Apart from being the largest internal organ, it performs vital functions such as filtering of blood and storing of important vitamins which are responsible for the normal functioning of the human body. It also releases bole into the digestive system which helps in the process of digestion and extraction of nutrients from the food.
The ever increasing alcoholism and mal nutrition due to excess consumption of junk food and eating of food that has been produced by using chemicals rather than naturally has given rise to increase in the number of liver disease cases. More than 2.3million people have been recorded as liver patients in the year of 2015 out of whom almost 1.2 million people died. The major reason is the lack of habit of organ donation. People everywhere in the world are looking for best treatment at reasonable prices and being very rich in medical resources and research, India has been the centre of discussion and liver transplantation hospital in India has been known for its high success rate while being a reasonably affordable process.
There are many hospitals around the world who provides the liver transplant treatment but in India the situation is not the same, Approximate liver transplant cost in India is not defined as various hospitals provide the liver transplant.
Here is some of the basic estimation of cost in different type of hospital:
| PLACE | GOVERNMENT | PRIVATE(midrange) | PRIVATE(highend) |
| COST | 5 LAKHS-7LAKHS | 12 LAKHS-15LAKHS | 18 LAKHS-20LAKHS |
CIRRHOSIS has been first identified by Hippocrates in the 5th century BC and it is a case when liver has been subject to a disease for a very long time rendering it ineffective in some or all the functions that it has to perform,It is mostly caused byAlcoholism, prolonged Hepatitis B, Hepatitis C and Fatty livers. In general, this disease develops over a long period of timeand the only solution for this situation is to have a liver transplantation and the process of liver transplantation in India is advanced enough to take care of such a case and help us.
SYMPTOMS
A patient with cirrhosis may not show any relevant symptoms which point towards liver making it harder to identify. Some of the symptoms which a patient will show are tiredness, loss of appetite, excessive bleeding from injuries due to lack of blood clotting, itching and yellowing of the skin.
DIAGNOSIS
Even though identifying by just the symptoms is rather difficult, there are tests which the hospitals which provide liver transplantation in India use through which they can identify cirrhosis.
1.PHYSICAL examination where the doctor examines the doctor examines the liver physically by identifying the area of pain and try to understand the extent of it.
2.BLOOD TEST is a very simple process where a blood sample is measured for the level of enzymes(Aminotransferases) which in general would be inside the liver but when the liver is damaged, they are spilled into the blood. The usual levels of these enzymes are lower in the muscle regions but when the liver is damaged, one can observe an increase in the levels of such enzymes.
3.LIVER BIOPSY is a method when a small needle is inserted into the liver for collecting a sample. This sample is then sent to a laboratory where the doctors examine it for various disorders and diseases. It is mostly a harmless process, but there are rare cases of internal bleeding or leakage of bile or gallbladder. You have to be careful and inform your doctor if you are pregnant, have any bleeding problems or taking any other medications.
GRADING
The cirrhosis is graded based on its severity. The doctors classify the patients into grades of A, B and C. If you are a grade A patient, it means that you are you have high chances of survival and if you are a grade C patient, it means that you are at a high risk of not surviving and death.
MEASURES TO TAKE
1.A person suffering from cirrhosis must abstain from drinking alcohol to prevent further damage.
2.Careful usage of over the counter medication
3.Avoidnce of infections
4.Eating low sodium diet
POST TRANSPLANTATION MEASURES
Infections are the major issue after any organ transplantation, we should be very careful regarding this aspect. The doctors who treat the patients for liver transplantation in India say that We should make sure that the patient is in hygiene surroundings and is eating healthy food avoiding raw or under cooked meat. The patient must abstain from taking alcohol and any other drugs.
PREVENTION
We have to try and prevent cirrhosis by following a healthy routine. We should eat green leaf vegetables which have been cultivated without using any chemicals. Abstain from continuous alcohol consumption and maintain a healthy weight. Exchanging needles and having unprotected sex can also increase your chances of falling victim of Hepatitis B and Hepatitis C.
SOLUTION
The only known solution for cirrhosis is a liver transplantation. There are two methods of liver transplantation in India
1.CADAVER transplant where the liver is taken from a dead person who has donated his or her organs.
2.LIVE transplant where a person is willing to donate a part of his liver to another.
The success rate of treatment for cirrhosis through liver transplantation in India has been over 94%.
