Pain in your liver itself can feel like a dull throbbing pain or a stabbing sensation in your right upper abdomen just under your ribs. General abdominal pain and discomfort can also be related to swelling from fluid retention and enlargement of your spleen and liver caused by cirrhosis.
Symptoms of an inflamed liver can include: Feelings of fatigue. Jaundice (a condition that causes your skin and the whites of your eyes to turn yellow) Feeling full quickly after a meal.
Liver pain is sometimes confused with a pain in the right shoulder, or in the abdomen, or the kidney. Many liver diseases and other organ conditions can cause liver pain. Some of these can lead to liver damage. Without treatment, the liver may eventually stop functioning.
As the liver becomes more severely damaged, more obvious and serious symptoms can develop, such as: yellowing of the skin or whites of the eyes (jaundice) swelling in the legs, ankles and feet caused by a build-up of fluid (oedema) swelling in your abdomen caused by a build-up of fluid known as ascites.
In some severe cases, you might notice a feeling of bloating or fullness in your belly, or an ache in your upper right abdomen, where your liver is. It's more likely your healthcare provider will discover it during an exam. They might notice that your liver is palpable to the touch, which it normally wouldn't be.
If your liver pain comes on quickly, hurts too much, goes on for a long time, or keeps you from carrying on with normal activities, get it checked out. Other signs that you need medical treatment right away include: Jaundice. Fever.
The pain may be throbbing or stabbing, and it can come and go. If you experience this type of pain regularly, or if the intensity of it prevents you from functioning normally, seek medical attention as soon as possible.
When cirrhosis begins to cause pain, it typically appears in the upper right abdomen, or just under the lower right ribs. The pain can be throbbing or stabbing, and it may come and go.
Stage 3: Cirrhosis
During this stage of disease, symptoms become more noticeable: pain and discomfort, fatigue, appetite loss, fluid retention, jaundice, and an itchy feeling around the liver.
If you're diagnosed when some scar tissue has already formed, your liver can repair and even regenerate itself. Because of this, damage from liver disease can often be reversed with a well-managed treatment plan. Many people with liver disease do not look or feel sick even though damage is happening to their liver.
People with fatty liver disease often have no symptoms until the disease progresses to cirrhosis of the liver. If you do have symptoms, they may include: Abdominal pain or a feeling of fullness in the upper right side of the abdomen (belly). Nausea, loss of appetite or weight loss.
NAFLD usually causes no signs and symptoms. When it does, they may include: Fatigue. Pain or discomfort in the upper right abdomen.
Most people with liver disease report abdominal pain. Pain in your liver itself can feel like a dull throbbing pain or a stabbing sensation in your right upper abdomen just under your ribs.
What is alcoholic hepatitis? Alcoholic hepatitis is an inflammation of the liver that lasts one to two weeks.It is believed to lead to alcoholic cirrhosis over a period of years.
Pain in the Upper Right Abdomen
So what does liver pain feel like? It manifests in different ways, but a common form is a dull throbbing. For some people, it occurs as a sharp, stabbing pain. Sometimes the pain migrates to other nearby areas, such as the right shoulder blade and the back.
If you've been diagnosed with any fatty liver disease, let your health care provider know if you have any symptoms that mean the disease is getting worse. These include fatigue, loss of appetite, weight loss, weakness, fluid retention, or bleeding.
The good news is that fatty liver disease can be reversed—and even cured—if patients take action, including a 10% sustained loss in body weight.
When the liver becomes inflamed, it causes pain and other symptoms throughout the body. The major causes of liver inflammation are hepatitis, alcohol abuse, poor nutrition, obesity, and diabetes.
In some cases, liver inflammation can be life threatening. Seek immediate medical care (call 911) for potentially serious symptoms, including: abdominal swelling or distention.
Liver pain is a common complaint in healthcare, but it's not usually something you can treat or cure at home. For some people, drinking too much alcohol or other substances can cause liver pain, but most of the time this pain can be a symptom of other liver problems.
Blood tests used to assess the liver are known as liver function tests. But liver function tests can be normal at many stages of liver disease. Blood tests can also detect if you have low levels of certain substances, such as a protein called serum albumin, which is made by the liver.