Ammonia and Liver Function

Liver function tests are important to help catch liver problems early.

There are many factors that can cause reduced liver function, from physical damage to disease. One of the byproducts of decreased liver function is the liver's inability to clean ammonia from the bloodstream. The liver is essential to removing toxins from your body, so it is important to understand how the liver does its job to protect your health and even your life.

Proper Liver Function

When working properly, the liver has several important functions. Some of these functions include breaking down fats for transport so the body can use them as energy, processing and storing iron, converting glucose into glycogen for storage, and removing drugs and poisons from the bloodstream. The liver also converts ammonia, which is poisonous, into urea for release in urine and controls blood clotting. According to the Lucile Packard Children's Hospital at Stanford, "The liver holds about 13 percent of the body's blood supply at any given moment."

Decreased Liver Function

When the liver is not working properly, significant problems arise. The liver may become unable to convert glucose or clear toxins from the blood, leading to a dangerous and sometimes deadly buildup in the bloodstream. Decreased liver function can also cause uncontrolled bleeding because the liver is unable to produce the factors essential to blood clotting. In addition, with decreased liver function the liver may become unable to convert ammonia, allowing this poisonous substance to stay in the bloodstream instead of being properly expelled as urea in the urine.

Effects of Ammonia

The effects of the liver's inability to convert and remove ammonia from the bloodstream can have a devastating effect on your health. Some of the symptoms of ammonia poisoning include vomiting, difficulty breathing, fatigue, disorientation and seizures. The effect of ammonia on the brain is a condition called hepatic encephalopathy, which can cause brain damage, coma, and even death.

Causes for Decreased Liver Function

There are a number of potential causes that can severely decrease liver function. When the liver is damaged to the point where it cannot convert and remove ammonia from the bloodstream, the condition is called acute liver failure. According to the Mayo Clinic, "Taking too much acetaminophen (Tylenol, others) is the most common cause of acute liver failure in the United States." Other causes include liver cancer, viral diseases like hepatitis, use of liver damaging prescription medications, and excessive use of drugs and alcohol.

Liver Function Tests

Your physician can run tests to check your liver function for problems. Tests are conducted by taking a blood sample and may include checking for slowed blood clotting or higher than usual levels of important enzymes used by the liver to metabolize proteins. Additional tests may include checking for low levels of albumin, a protein instrumental in fighting infection, or high levels of bilirubin, which causes jaundice.

References

• Labtestsonline.org, Ammonia: Test Sample
• Mayo Clinic, Liver Function Test
• Children's Hospital at Stanford, How the Liver Works
• Mayo Clinic, Acute Liver Failure