What is Liver Function Test and Its Importance to Health
If you are like most people, you probably do not give your liver much thought. After all, the liver is not something that affects your daily life. But if you pay attention to your health, you should know that taking care of your liver is very important in maintaining good health and avoiding illness.
The liver is an invaluable organ that functions to detoxify the body. Its function is to rid you of the toxins that your body ingests and produces. If you do not take care of your liver, you may suffer from symptoms or illnesses that can be life-threatening.
Fortunately, many doctors offer liver function tests to diagnose diseases related to the liver before they become too severe and spread to other parts of the body. Here are some things about these tests that may surprise you about getting an accurate liver test result.
Overview of liver function tests
One of the most vital systems for managing your health is your liver. It does a lot to keep you healthy, so you must take care of it. One way to ensure your liver remains healthy is by undergoing regular tests for liver function and liver enzymes.
What Are liver function tests?
Liver Function Tests, also known as LFTs, are blood tests used to help diagnose and monitor liver disease or damage. Lab specialists perform several tests to detect, evaluate, and monitor liver disease or impairment. They can also conduct liver function tests when a person is suffering from symptoms of liver disease like abdominal pain, jaundice, fatigue, vomiting, and more.
What is the importance of a liver function test?
Performing liver function tests is vital because they can detect liver damage or disease. Liver diseases are diagnosed and monitored through these tests. The most common reason to get tested for the liver function is jaundice, which causes yellowing of your skin and eyes. Some doctors will recommend a test for anyone with unexplained fatigue or dark urine, but those are not the only potential symptoms of liver dysfunction.
These tests can also monitor patients already diagnosed with a disease related to the liver, such as hepatitis. Other importance includes:
- Measure the liver health
- Detects liver diseases
- Helps to diagnose liver health
- Shows the causes of jaundice
- Reveals the causes of anemia
- Detects the causes of abnormal blood clotting
- Helps to monitor alcohol-related diseases
What are the tests included in a liver function test?
- Total protein
- Albumin
- Globulin
- Bilirubin (direct and indirect)
- Alkaline phosphatase (ALP)
- Aspartate aminotransferase (AST)
- Alanine aminotransferase (ALT)
- The total protein measures the number of proteins in blood plasma. Kidney failure, starvation, or alcoholism may cause low protein.
- Albumin – A protein that helps maintain blood pressure, prevents dehydration, and regulates body temperature. We associate low albumin with malnutrition and dehydration.
- Bilirubin (direct and indirect) – Red blood cells release this chemical when they break down. Bilirubin gets trapped inside liver cells, which ultimately leads to jaundice. High bilirubin can cause yellowing of the skin (hyperpigmentation) and damage to the nervous system if left untreated.
- Globulin- This type of protein helps your body fight infections and regulate hormones. A low globulin level may suggest that you have an underlying condition that affects your immune system or issues with your kidneys or liver. A high globulin level may be because of chronic infection or inflammation.
- Alkaline phosphatase (ALP) – An enzyme used to help digest food. Higher alkaline phosphatase may be because of injury or inflammation of the bile ducts.
- Aspartate aminotransferase (AST) – An enzyme that helps convert food into energy for cells throughout your body. We commonly associate high AST with viral infections, such as hepatitis B or C.
- Alanine aminotransferase (ALT) – is an enzyme responsible for converting amino acids into proteins. We associate high ALT levels with hepatitis, fatty liver disease, and cirrhosis.
These tests need to occur not only when you suspect liver disease but also as a routine check is available at Medbury Medicals.
Determining if Your Liver is Okay–The Table of Clinical Indicators
You can use a combination of seven tests to determine if your liver is functioning well: AST, ALT, ALP, Total Protein, Albumin, and Globulin. Typical blood test results for liver function tests include:
| Liver Function Test | Normal Range |
| ALT | 7 to 55 units per liter (U/L) |
| AST | 8 to 48 units per liter (U/L) |
| ALP | 40 to 129 units per liter (U/L) |
| Albumin | 3.5 to 5.0 grams per deciliter (g/dL) |
| Total protein | 6.3 to 7.9 grams per deciliter (g/dL) |
| Bilirubin | 0.1 to 1.2 milligrams per deciliter (mg/dL) |
| Globulin | 2.0 to 3.9 grams per deciliter (g/dL) |
LFTs Interpretation
An abnormal result means your AST is higher than 48, and your ALT is higher than 55. If your score is above 5 for albumin, you may have some level of liver damage. An elevated level of ALP can range from mild to severe. If your ALP level is high, you may have liver damage or a bone disorder. Bilirubin levels over 1.2 mg/dL are high. If your result is below 2.1 g/dL, it is below healthy for the globulin test, which shows that you may have an issue with your liver.
When can we decide to take the Liver function test?
- Experience symptoms like jaundice, dark urine, vomiting, and abdominal pain.
- You are on a medication that can cause liver damage.
- A disease is causing liver damage to you.
- Surgery is in the works for you.
- A pregnant woman experiences any of those symptoms.
What are the risks of taking the liver function test?
There are no serious risks or complications associated with LFT. However, some minor issues may occur in taking the test:
- The blood sample may sting for a few seconds when drawn from your vein.
- Needle puncture site may bruise after the procedure.
- There is a slight risk of infection from the needle puncture site.
- In rare cases, excessive bleeding can occur from the needle puncture site.
What are the symptoms of liver disease?
If you do not take care of your liver, you could suffer from many symptoms and conditions, including fatigue, abdominal pain, high cholesterol levels, inflamed skin, and malnutrition.
What are the risk factors for liver disease?
You may be at higher risk for liver disease if you: Have a family history of liver disease, excessive alcohol consumption, metabolic disorders, and viral hepatitis.
What Causes Liver Damage?
Liver damage is often irreversible, and it is essential to detect signs of this damage as soon as possible so that we can treat it before it is too late.
Some people may not have any visible signs or symptoms of a problem with the liver until it has reached an advanced state, and regular testing of the functioning of the same is vital for everyone.
Drugs, alcohol, chemicals, viruses, parasites, or other infectious diseases can cause damage to your liver, like hepatitis.
Hepatitis is a common type of liver damage that affects your entire body and spreads from others to you.
The most prevalent types of hepatitis are hepatitis A virus (HAV), hepatitis B virus (HBV), and hepatitis C virus (HCV). Because there is no cure for HBV or HCV, many people who get these types will develop chronic conditions. Other causes include autoimmune disorders such as primary biliary cirrhosis and hemochromatosis. It is necessary to keep track of any symptoms that may show something is wrong with your liver, so you can seek treatment right away if necessary.
When should you get a transplant for liver failure or cirrhosis?
Most people with severe liver disease are candidates for a liver transplant if their condition doesn’t worsen or improve within six months. It means that they might still enjoy life after the operation. Sometimes, a liver transplant isn’t possible because its damage is beyond repair. For example, when the patient’s condition worsens too much, the disease spreads through other organs.
Frequently Asked Questions About LFTs
What are the potential health effects of AST?
An increase in AST levels may show liver damage, disease, or muscle damage.
What is bilirubin?
Bilirubin is a substance produced during the normal breakdown of red blood cells.
What can affect liver function tests?
Certain foods and medications can affect the results of your liver function tests.
How do I take a liver function test?
During the test, they usually draw the blood sample for liver function tests through a small needle inserted into a vein in the bend of your arm.
What are the risks of needle removal?
You may feel a sharp pain as they insert the needle into your arm and experience some short-term discomfort at the site after needle removal.
What can affect liver function tests?
Certain foods and medications can affect the results of your liver function tests.
What Are Liver Function Tests?
Liver function tests are blood tests used to help diagnose and monitor liver disease or damage.
How long does a blood test take?
If we do the lab analysis on-site, you could have your test results within hours.
