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Topic: Liver function tests

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Aspartate transaminase

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	Liver Function Tests
		Liver function tests represent a broad range of normal functions performed by the liver.
		Although AST is not a specific for liver as the ALT, ratios between ALT and AST are useful to physicians in assessing the etiology of liver enzyme abnormalities.
		This test is useful for evaluation of patients who have abnormal liver function tests since it allows a direct quantification of multiple different serum proteins.
	www.gastromd.com /lft.html (1219 words)

	Common Liver Function Tests
		This test is used to measure the level of albumin (a protein in the blood) and aides in the diagnosis of liver disease.
		This test measures the level of aspartate transaminase (an enzyme that is found in the liver, kidneys, pancreas, heart, skeletal muscle, and red blood cells) that is released into the bloodstream after liver or heart problems.
		This test measures the level of gamma-glutamyl transpeptidase (an enzyme that is produced in the liver, pancreas, and biliary tract).
	www.healthsystem.virginia.edu /uvahealth/adult_liver/tests.cfm (483 words)

	Liver Function Tests
		In contrast to the alkaline phosphatase, the GGT tends not to be elevated in diseases of bone, placenta, or intestine.
		In liver disease caused by excess alcohol ingestion, the AST tends to exceed the ALT, while the reverse is true to for viral hepatitis.
		Interpretation of these liver tests is a sophisticated process that your physician will utilize in the context of your medical history, physical examination, and other tests such as X-rays or other imaging studies of the liver.
	www.ariess.com /s-crina/tests-lft.htm (1038 words)

	British Liver Trust (Site not responding. Last check: 2007-10-19)
		Liver function tests are performed in your GP surgery, in hospital and in many other areas where you may be being investigated for liver disease.
		The liver function test is actually a number of parts, each looking at different properties of your blood, which indirectly can tell you something about how the liver is working.
		Each laboratory in the UK provides a "normal value" or "reference value" to the test, which can give the doctor, nurse or specialist a guide as to whether or not your test is in the average for normal function or is outside of the normal range and may be abnormal.
	www.britishlivertrust.org.uk /content/liver/diagnosis.asp (2194 words)

	Liver function tests - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
		Liver function tests (LFTs or LFs), which include liver enzymes, are groups of clinical biochemistry laboratory blood assays designed to give information about the state of a patient's liver.
		This testing is performed by a Medical technologist on a patient's serum or plasma which is collected by a phlebotomist.
		The liver's ability to produce glucose (gluconeogenesis) is usually the last function to be lost in the setting of fulminant liver failure.
	en.wikipedia.org /wiki/Liver_function_tests (803 words)

	Liver Function Tests Information on Healthline
		Liver function tests done individually do not give the physician very much information, but used in combination along with a careful history, physical examination, and imaging studies they contribute to making an accurate diagnosis of the specific liver disorder.
		Tests for cholesterol, bilirubin, ALP, and bile salts are measures of the secretory (excretory) function of the liver.
		Cholesterol is synthesized by the liver and cholesterol balance is maintained by the liver's ability to remove cholesterol from lipoproteins, and use it to produce bile acids and salts that it excretes into the bile ducts.
	www.healthline.com /galecontent/liver-function-tests (2204 words)

	Abnormal liver function tests
		Untreated processes in the liver can sometimes lead to cirrhosis, a condition of the liver that is usually irreversible and can ultimately result in liver failure.
		The liver also makes proteins that aid in the clotting of blood, and levels of this protein are often measured indirectly by checking the clotting of the blood in a test called the prothrombin time, or PT.
		Liver biopsy is often necessary to help sort out the various causes of liver disease.
	www.drvergilio.com /abnormal_liver_function_tests.htm (703 words)

	liver function tests & blood tests
		Rather than liver function tests, it is more useful to refer to these tests as serum liver tests and to mentally categorise them according to the pathophysiologic processes they truly reflect.
		The purpose of this blood test is to detect a recent myocardial infarction (heart attack); to aid detection and differential diagnosis of acute hepatic disease and to monitor patient progress and prognosis in cardiac and hepatic diseases.
		Elevated in liver disease, mononucleosis, hemolytic anaemia, low levels of exposure to the sun, and toxic effects to some drugs, decreased levels are seen in people with an inefficient liver, excessive fat digestion, and possibly a diet low in nitrogen bearing foods.
	home3.inet.tele.dk /omni/alttest.htm (3336 words)

	Liver Function Tests \| AHealthyMe.com
		Liver function tests, or LFTs, include tests for bilirubin, a breakdown product of hemoglobin, and ammonia, a protein byproduct that is normally converted into urea by the liver before being excreted by the kidneys.
		Liver function tests are used to aid in the differential diagnosis of liver disease and injury, and to help monitor response to treatment.
		Also called liver encephalopathy or hepatic coma, this is a disorder in which brain function deteriorates because toxic substances, which would normally be removed by the liver, accumulate in the bloodstream due to liver damage or disease.
	www.ahealthyme.com /topic/topic100587092 (1831 words)

	Liver Function Tests (Site not responding. Last check: 2007-10-19)
		Gastroenterology Consultants, PC The term "liver function tests" and its abbreviated form "LFTs" is a commonly used term that is applied to a variety of blood tests that assess the general state of the liver and biliary system.
		In contrast to the alkaline phosphatase, the GGT is not elevated in diseases of bone, placenta, or intestine.
		Interpretation of these liver tests is a sophisticated process that your physician will utilize in the context of your medical history, physical examination, and other tests such as X-rays or imaging studies of the liver.
	www.gastro.com /html/liverdisease/liver_function.shtml (1090 words)

	UpToDate Liver function tests that detect injury to hepatocytes
		These tests are often referred to as "liver function tests," although this term is somewhat misleading since most do not accurately reflect how well the liver is functioning, and abnormal values can be caused by diseases unrelated to the liver.
		Tests of the liver's capacity to transport organic anions and metabolize drugs — These tests measures the liver's ability to clear endogenous or exogenous substances from the circulation.
		Tests of the liver's biosynthetic capacity — The most commonly performed tests to assess the biosynthetic capacity of the liver are the serum albumin and the prothrombin time (which requires the presence of clotting factors produced in the liver).
	patients.uptodate.com /topic.asp?file=hep_dis/14026 (726 words)

	Liver Function Tests - Patient UK
		The functions of the liver include: storing glycogen (fuel for the body) which is made from sugars; helping to process fats and proteins from digested food; making proteins that are essential for blood to clot (clotting factors); processing many medicines which you may take; helping to remove poisons and toxins from the body.
		Liver function tests are useful, and are often the first marker of disease in the liver.
		However, other tests of the liver may also be done to confirm the diagnosis of a particular disorder, and/or to monitor the activity of the disorder and response to treatment.
	www.patient.co.uk /showdoc/27000446 (1033 words)

	OHSU Health - Common Liver Function Tests (Site not responding. Last check: 2007-10-19)
		This test is used to measure the level of albumin (a protein in the blood) and aides in the diagnosis of liver disease.
		This test measures the level of aspartate transaminase (an enzyme that is found in the liver, kidneys, pancreas, heart, skeletal muscle, and red blood cells) that is released into the bloodstream after liver or heart problems.
		This test measures the level of gamma-glutamyl transpeptidase (an enzyme that is produced in the liver, pancreas, and biliary tract).
	www.ohsuhealth.com /htaz/liver/common_liver_function_tests.cfm (479 words)

	Postgraduate Medicine: Abnormal findings on liver function tests
		The term "liver function tests" is firmly entrenched in the medical vocabulary, although it has been criticized because the tests most commonly used to evaluate liver disease--measurement of serum aminotransferase and alkaline phosphatase (ALP) levels--assess hepatocyte integrity rather than a known synthetic function.
		Liver biopsy is also useful in acquiring hepatic tissue samples to send for culture, in evaluating response to therapies for viral and metabolic liver disease (eg, Wilson's disease, hemochromatosis, autoimmune hepatitis, primary biliary cirrhosis), and excluding allograft failure, reinfection, or ischemia after orthotopic liver transplantation.
		Liver function tests and the objective evaluation of the patient with liver disease.
	www.postgradmed.com /issues/2000/02_00/gopal.htm (2931 words)

	Hepatitis & Liver Function Tests
		Surprisingly, the degree of aminotransferase elevation correlates poorly with the extent of hepatocyte necrosis, as determined by liver biopsy, and is not predictive of outcome in acute hepatitis.
		Bone and liver are the major sources of serum AP, although individuals with blood groups O and B may have a significant serum AP level derived from the small bowel, particularly after a fatty meal.
		Newly formed (unconjugated) bilirubin circulates in blood bound nonpermanently to serum albumin and is carried to the liver, where it is extracted by hepatic parenchymal cells, conjugated first with one and then with a second glucuronide molecule to form bilirubin diglucuronide, and then excreted in the bile.
	enotes.tripod.com /hepatitis.htm (2330 words)

	Liver Panel
		A liver panel, also known as liver (hepatic) function tests or LFT, is used to detect, evaluate, and monitor liver disease or damage.
		One or more of these tests may also be ordered when a person has been or may have been exposed to a hepatitis virus; has a family history of liver disease; has excessive alcohol intake; or is taking a drug that can cause liver damage.
		Liver disease may be first detected through routine blood testing that is performed as part of a physical.
	www.labtestsonline.org /understanding/analytes/liver_panel/glance.html (427 words)

	Liver Function Tests
		Special Considerations in Interpreting Liver Function Tests DAVID E. University of New Mexico School of Medicine Albuquerque, New Mexico A number of pitfalls can be encountered in the interpretation of common blood liver function tests.
		Persistently elevated liver AP values in asymptomatic patients, especially women, can be caused by primary biliary cirrhosis, which is a chronic inflammatory disorder of the small bile ducts.
		The classes indicate severity of liver dysfunction: class A is associated with a good prognosis, and class C is associated with limited life expectancy.
	archive.mail-list.com /hbv_research/msg00298.html (2366 words)

	4MedicalTips.com - Understanding Liver Function Tests (Site not responding. Last check: 2007-10-19)
		Liver function tests are performed to evaluate the levels of various liver enzymes and proteins, and how the liver is functioning in general.
		Over time the function of the liver may be decreased due to the effects of these substances or from various disease states, which is why a health care provider may order a panel of liver function tests.
		Liver functions tests can provide health care providers with a great amount of information about how the liver, kidneys, and bile ducts are working and if other disease states are present.
	4medicaltips.com /the_news/latest_news/understanding_liver_function_tests.html (516 words)

	Liver Function Tests Information on Healthline
		Liver function tests, or LFTs, include tests for bilirubin, a breakdown product of hemoglobin, and ammonia, a protein byproduct that is normally converted into urea by the liver before being excreted by the kidneys.
		Liver function tests are used to aid in the differential diagnosis of liver disease and injury, and to help monitor response to treatment.
		Liver function tests are used to determine if the liver has been damaged or its function impaired.
	www.healthline.com /galecontent/liver-function-tests-2 (783 words)

	Abnormal Liver - Abnormal Liver Function Tests
		When liver hepatocytes are being damaged or dying, ALT and AST leak out of dying cells and their activities are increased in the blood.
		In acute liver diseases—some types of hepatitis or drug overdoses that are of sudden onset—liver failure can be rapid and dramatic as a result of massive destruction of all the liver cells at once.
		Abnormal liver function tests or liver enzymes suggest the presence of a liver disease.
	www.dentalplans.com /Dental-Health-Articles/Abnormal-Liver-Function-Tests.asp (1751 words)

	Special Considerations in Interpreting Liver Function Tests - April 15, 1999 - American Academy of Family Physicians
		The liver synthesizes blood clotting factors II, V, VII, IX and X. The prothrombin time (PT) does not become abnormal until more than 80 percent of liver synthetic capacity is lost.
		For example, the 10-year survival rate is as high as 80 percent in patients with hepatitis C and cirrhosis who have Child class A liver function and no variceal bleeding.
		Liver histology in hepatitis C infection: a comparison between patients with persistently normal or abnormal transaminases.
	www.aafp.org /afp/990415ap/2223.html (4008 words)

	[No title]
		A series of special blood tests can often determine whether or not the liver is functioning properly.
		Bilirubin is produced by the liver and is excreted in the bile.
		Alpha-fetoprotein Test - This protein is produced by the fetal liver and testes, indicating hepatitis or cancer.
	www.umm.edu /liver/tests.htm (370 words)

	Information about Liver Blood Tests (enzymes) - produced by medical doctors
		liver function blood test, liver cancer blood test, liver cancer, liver damage from medication, fatty liver, liver alt, ast liver function, liver disease, normal liver enzyme levels, elevated liver blood test, abnormal liver blood test
		An initial step in detecting liver damage is a simple blood test to determine the presence of certain liver enzymes in the blood.
		If the liver is injured, the liver cells spill the enzymes into blood, raising the enzyme levels in the blood and signaling the liver damage.
	www.medicinenet.com /liver_blood_tests/article.htm (793 words)

	Liver Function Tests --- HealthandAge
		In many cases the tests are simply done as a routine part of the annual physical exam or as part of a laboratory general screening when you come in for another complaint.
		Other tests, such as CT scanning or nuclear tests to evaluate the function of the liver, may also be needed.
		Alcohol is directly toxic to the liver and may have a profound effect on the liver already damaged by another problem.
	www.healthandage.com /Home/120!gid7=35 (423 words)

	Simple FactSheet: Liver Function Tests
		LFTs (liver function tests) are a group of blood tests that can help to show how well a person's liver is working.
		LFTs include measurements of albumin, various liver enzymes (ALT, AST, GGT and ALP), bilirubin, prothrombin time, cholesterol and total protein.
		When liver cells are damaged or dying, ALT and AST leak into the bloodstream.
	www.aegis.com /factshts/network/simple/liverfun.html (903 words)

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