What I Need to Know About Cirrhosis

This National Institutes of Health Publication 11-5166, "What I Need to Know About Cirrhosis," provides information about Cirrhosis and liver issues - knowing how to prevent issues, knowing the symptoms of issues and knowing how to receive proper treatment allowing you to lead a full, healthy life. Cirrhosis is scarring of the liver. Scar tissue forms because of injury or long-term disease. Scar tissue replaces healthy liver tissue and blocks the normal flow of blood through the liver. A healthy liver: makes proteins, helps fight infections, cleans the blood, helps digest food, and stores a form of sugar that your body uses for energy. A liver with too much scar tissue cannot work properly. You cannot live without a liver that works. But early treatment can control symptoms and keep cirrhosis from getting worse.