LIVER FUNCTION TEST / LFT

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LIVER FUNCTION TEST / LFT

Liver is the workhorse of our body. Liver produces various enzymes and proteins that help the body get rid of its waste material. Liver Function Test or LFT is ordered to check the functioning of the liver. It is a simple blood based test.

REASON FOR TESTING OF LIVER FUNCTION TEST / LFT

It is ordered in patients with following symptoms:

weakness
fatigue or loss of energy
weight loss
jaundice (yellow skin and eyes)
nausea
vomiting
diarrhoea
abdominal pain

Apart from above it is ordered in people who are at risk of the liver disease:

chronic alcoholics
Hepatitis exposure
Individual with family history of liver disease

Liver Function Test, Symptoms by LabsAdvisor

After a certain age, one should get LFT done every year. Liver disease symptoms take a long time to manifest and by that time some diseases become irreversible. Also, people who are taking regular medication e.g. parkinsons medication, should get liver function tested regularly as many medicines impact liver function negatively. People who are overweight or have diabetes may develop fatty liver. Liver Function Test can detect fatty liver and help in management an reversal of this condition.

WHAT IS BEING TESTED IN LIVER FUNCTION TEST / LFT

Liver Function Test (LFT) is a group of test that are done to evaluate, detect and monitor liver disease or damage. It includes usually following:

Aspartate aminotransferase (AST) - to measure enzymes that liver releases in response to disease
Alanine aminotransferase (ALT) - to measure enzymes that liver releases in response to disease
Alkaline phosphatase (ALP)
Bilirubin - include Total Bilirubin , Direct Bilirubin , Indirect Bilirubin
Total protein (TP)
Albumin
Gamma - glut amyl transferase (GGT)
Prothrombin time (PT)

Some of the above parameters measure the enzymes that liver releases in response to disease. Other check how well liver creates the protein albumin. Bilirubin tests measure how well liver disposes bilirubin a waste product of blood.

INTERPRETATION OF LIVER FUNCTION TEST / LFT TEST RESULT

Type of liver condition or disease	ALT and AST	Bilirubin	ALP	Albumin	PT
Acute liver damage	Usually greatly increased	Normal or increased	Normal or moderately increased	Normal	Normal
Chronic forms of various liver disorders	Mild or moderately increased	Normal or increased	Normal to slightly increased	Normal	Normal
Alcoholic Hepatitis	AST is moderately increased, usually at least twice the level of ALT	Normal or increased	Normal or moderately increased	Normal	Normal
Cirrhosis	AST is usually higher than ALT	May be increased	Normal or increased	Normal or decreased	prolonged