Cyst Of The Right And Left Lobe Of The Liver - Causes, Symptoms, Diet And Treatment Of Liver Cysts, What To Do?

2024 Author: Josephine Shorter | [email protected]. Last modified: 2024-01-07 17:49

Causes, symptoms and treatment of liver cysts

Content:

• Signs and symptoms of liver cysts
• Causes of liver cysts
• Liver cyst treatment
• Removal of liver cysts (surgery)
• Diet (nutrition) with a liver cyst

A liver cyst is a newly formed pathological cavity in the liver with a wall and contents in the form of a clear liquid or jelly-like mass of yellow-green color. The size of the cyst in the liver and the structure of its wall are different and depend on the age and the mechanism of formation and location.

The liver cyst is considered a fairly common disease, according to the dispensary examination, this pathology can be found in 0.8% of the population, and based on necropsy data, the frequency of undetected liver cysts reaches 2% of the total population. In men, cysts in the liver are much less common than in women, as a rule, they are detected at the age of 30 to 50 years.

Cysts can be localized in different segments and lobes of the liver, be located both on the surface and at a depth. The most common cysts of the left lobe of the liver. The diameter of the detected liver cysts varies from a few millimeters to 25 centimeters, and in rare cases, neoplasms can be large.

The liver cyst can be single or multiple. With a single form of the disease, a neoplasm forms in one of the lobes of the organ. With multiple forms, cysts can be located in one part of the liver and cover a third of the entire area.

Liver cysts are classified as parasitic and nonparasitic.

Nonparasitic cysts, in turn, are classified as false or true. False ones have an etiology of a traumatic or inflammatory nature, often due to the surgical treatment of echinococcus or liver abscess.

In most cases, this type of cyst does not have obvious symptoms, and therefore, detection often occurs with ultrasound or computed tomography. True cysts include tumors that have arisen during intrauterine development. They are:

• solitary (a cyst located in the right lobe of the liver, has a rounded formation with a leg falling into the abdominal cavity);
• in the form of polycystic disease - (cysts of the left and right lobes of the liver caused by gene mutations);
• in the form of cystofibrosis (congenital liver pathology).

Parasitic cysts of the liver occur when a person is infected with parasites from an animal. They come in two varieties:

• echinococcal (formed when tapeworms enter the body);
• alveococcal (due to the damaging activity of helminths).

Signs and symptoms of liver cysts

Clinically small cysts, both single and multiple, especially when located in different lobes of the organ, do not express vivid symptoms. As a rule, patients do not present any specific complaints.

Symptoms appear when the cysts grow large or their number increases significantly. The main symptoms in such cases are:

• aching and dull pain in the right side, near the navel and epigastrium;
• a feeling of heaviness and pressure in the right hypochondrium and epigastric region;
• the appearance of nausea, vomiting (often after eating);
• bowel disorder;

Nonspecific symptoms include:

• loss of appetite;
• general weakness;
• increased sweating;
• shortness of breath;
• subfebrile condition (in cases where the process of suppuration of the contents of the cyst begins);
• jaundice, hepatomegaly, sudden weight loss, abdominal asymmetry (if the cyst reaches a huge size).

In rare cases, the presence of a cyst can be detected by palpation, however, the main way to diagnose it is ultrasound and computed tomography.

To diagnose a parasitic cyst, it is necessary to carry out a rather specific serology, since an analysis for cysts echinococcosis will be needed.

Causes of liver cysts

If in the question of the etiology of parasitic cysts of the liver, the main reason for their appearance has long been determined - infection of the body with parasites, then the formation of nonparasitic cysts still causes a lot of controversy. The reasons, according to scientists, can be varied:

• hyperplasia of the hepatic biliary tract during embryogenesis and their further obstruction;
• pathology in the interlobular bile ducts;
• the use of hormonal drugs;
• various traumatic injuries, liver diseases, surgery;
• inflammatory processes progressing in the liver.

Liver cyst treatment

The treatment regimen for liver cysts is prescribed after determining the type of neoplasm and making an accurate diagnosis using ultrasound, abdominal CT and MRI results.

With a liver cyst and after its removal, the attending physician may recommend taking various medications that support the liver and strengthen the body's immune system. It is important to take such drugs strictly according to the indicated schemes, since non-compliance with the dosage and other nuances can seriously aggravate not only the liver, but also the whole body.

In most cases, the treatment of cysts involves surgical intervention, since if there is a large nonparasitic cyst, there is a risk of rupture, which means hemorrhage and infection. In addition, progressive cysts can lead to various disorders of the liver, its atrophy and replacement of the hepatic parenchyma with cystic formations.

When the diameter of the cyst does not exceed three centimeters, surgical intervention is not considered, the only exception may be the case when the development of obstructive jaundice is recorded. If the operation is not prescribed, the patient is subject to dispensary observation.

In all other situations, in the presence of a neoplasm of more than 5 centimeters, surgical removal of the cyst is recommended.

Removal of liver cysts (surgery)

Medical specialists subdivide all types of surgical treatment and removal of cysts in the liver into radical, palliative and conditionally radical.

Liver transplantation is considered a radical operation for liver cysts.

Palliative operations include:

• opening and complete emptying of the cystic formation;
• marsupialization of the cyst (sewing the edges of the emptied cyst to the walls of the surgical wound);
• cystogastroanastomosis.

Conditionally radical operations for liver cysts are considered to be:

• elimination of the affected part of the organ;
• exfoliation of the cyst with its membranes;
• excision of the cyst wall.

There is also a gradation of the indications themselves for surgery for liver cysts. They are divided into relative, absolute and conditionally absolute.

Relative indications include:

• large cysts (diameter from 5 to 10 cm);
• isolated cyst of 3-4 segments;
• recurrent cysts of the liver in cases where puncture methods of treatment are ineffective.

Absolute indications include suppuration, rupture, bleeding.

Conditionally absolute include:

• a giant cyst of any localization (at least 10 cm in diameter);
• cyst formation with a central location at the gate of the liver;
• a cyst with pronounced symptoms (digestive disorders, persistent pain, etc.).

After surgery, supportive therapy is prescribed. During this period, doctors recommend following a special diet and paying attention to the body's immune system.

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Diet (nutrition) with a liver cyst

When diagnosing a liver cyst and after its surgical removal, it is necessary to follow a strict diet, in which fatty, fried, salted, smoked and canned foods are necessarily excluded from the diet. It is also contraindicated to consume carbonated drinks, coffee, hot sauces, spices and seasonings, sweets.

Since the liver is adversely affected by the lack of vitamins and various microelements, it is important to consume daily: foods rich in fiber, fruits and vegetables (carrots, parsnips, strawberries, beets, Jerusalem artichoke, etc.), greens, sea buckthorn, rose hips, fish, dairy products …

The basic principles of a liver cyst diet:

• the diet should contain a sufficient amount of complete, easily digestible protein (about 120 grams of pure protein);
• the quality and quantity of consumed fats (about 80 grams) and carbohydrates (no more than 450 grams) must be determined taking into account the patient's condition and his physiological characteristics;
• food must be thoroughly cooked;
• meals should be frequent and in small portions;
• the average energy value of the daily diet should be about 3000 kcal.

The above norms and principles of the diet are generalized, therefore, when drawing up an individual diet, you must consult a dietitian.

The author of the article: Gorshenina Elena Ivanovna | Gastroenterologist

Education: Diploma in the specialty "General Medicine" received at the Russian State Medical University named after N. I. Pirogova (2005). Postgraduate studies in the specialty "Gastroenterology" - educational and scientific medical center.