I've been diagnosed with PCOS and have been taking Metformin for almost a year. My GYN took my blood work and everything was normal except my liver enzymes. They were elevated. She referred me to my physician. When I went he said that it was nothing to worry about. It could have been aspirin that I was taking, even though I don't take a lot of medicine. Two months later, I repeated the liver panel test and was checked for Hepatitas C. It came back negative for Hep, but my liver enzymes has skyrocketed! On the scale of 1-90 it was 215. The doctor felt my liver and he said it was enlarged! I'm so upset because I don't drink, smoke or eat pork. Could PCOS have something to do with this? He's running more blood test and I have to take an abdominal CT scan next Friday. He siad if everthing come back normal then I will have to get a liver biospy. I'm so nervous. I was looking up info and it could be coming from the excess fat on my stomach pushing onto my liver. Or it could be an accumalation of fat over the years from meat. Has anyone had this problem?
My DH has elevatedl liver enzymes. The doc told him to avoid Tylonol and eat a low fat diet. There are different things that can cause elevated liver enzymes, and a fatty liver can mean scaring of the liver like that people get from drinking. If it's fatty streaks, but no scars you have the hope of healing. DH went thru different tests and they don't think he has scaring, just fatty liver. I hope your biopsy goes well!
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Non-alcoholic fatty liver is COMPLETELY reversible.
If you are overweight, just loosing about 10% of your body weight would help significantly!
A good book to check out at your local library is : "The Liver Cleansing Diet" by Sandra Cabot, MD. It's a very informative book and she discusses the types of food that one should eat.
The great thing about it, is that the recipes and foods one should eat are low-fat, low cholesterol, and sodium reduced. The foods also work well with what one should eat if they have PCOS, since she states to stay away from too much of those carbs...
I checked it out because I'm going through the same thing and my liver enzymes went waayyyy down!
(It helps because I'm exercising as well.)
But, I'm still going to have a liver/spleen scan on the 29th of November and also my Gastroenterologist wants to test me for: a complete metabolic profile, ferritin, GGT, Iron, Serum, LDH, and TIBC/Iron, Copper/Serum, Ceruloplasim, RPR, SPEP, and Direct Biliruben...Crazy huh? Even though my liver enzymes went down.
It's just to be on the safe side however. Cat scans can pick up tumors and could see the percentage of how much fat is diffused in the liver.
(DONT WORRY!)
It's related to your PCOS. That's what my PCOS Specialist told me. And once I started eating healthier and exercising, I reversed it. Yet, it's an ongoing process!
I'm never going back.
It's a lifestyle change for me, for life!!!!
EAT HEALTHY, EXERCISE!!!
Very important!
And ask questions! Do your research and follow doctors orders!
Non-alcoholic fatty liver is COMPLETELY reversible.
FWIW, docs dissagree on that one. If scaring happens, that is not reversable, it's permanent, and yes scaring can occur from non-alcholic fatty liver disease. Some docs think it's not reversable at all even if there is no scaring, but some are now saying if there is no scars, you have hope for recovery.
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Mine seems to get better (the enlargement, I mean) when I quit eating processed foods and take Milk Thistle. You will want to check w/ your doc before taking Milk Thistle though and wait till all of your tests are done. Liver enlargement and fatty liver with enzyme elevation is a common problem in women with PCOS and in those with Syndrome X (also common in PCOSers). It is a good idea to take care of it now in the early stages before permanent damage is done. Try not to worry too much though as the liver is very good at repairing itself given proper nutrition, vitamins, exercise, etc. Good luck and God Bless.
__________________ Mandi-30 Ron-35 Married 6/14/03 DX-2001
Ocella, HCTZ, Lopressor 200mg, Prozac 20mg, Metformin ER, Byetta
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I went through all the same test. I had some routine blood work done that showed that I had elevated Liver functions. My doctor ordered more blood tests to test for Hepatitis and Diabetes. Those turned out okay. Then he ordered an abdominal ultrasound which showed a slightly enlarged spleen. So then he ordered and abdominal CT scan. Everything was fine.
So........after all that mess (about 3 months timespan with all of those tests), we ran the original blood work again, and everything was in normal range.
Moral of the story, I had a slight cold when I originally did the blood work so the tests were off. When your body is fighting off an infection, it is possible to develop elevated liver functions and have an enlarged spleen.
Hope everything works out okay for you, as it did for me, although it would have been nice not to have to do all those tests.
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- Amber
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I have NAFLD (Non Alcoholic Fatty Liver Disease); I was diagnosed with it 2 years before I was DX with PCOS after having an ultrasound on my liver. The last appointment I had with my gastro he explained my enzymes had skyrocketed, and I needed to continue with my WW or I would have to have a biopsy in 4 months to see what kind of damage has been done. Jashobeam is correct it can cause irreversible scarring. Also, if a person with NAFLD did not take procautions against meds like Tylenol and other drugs containing acetaminophen it can lead to other types of liver problems. Case in point my mother was diagnosed with Fatty Liver Disease when she was in her late 20's all 3 times she was pregnant the doctor gave her 500 mg Tylenol tablets to take for the pain (she had bad pregnancies). After I was born she became jaundice, and after a whole year of testing for Lupus and having all of our family vaccinated for every form of Hepatis the doctor diagnosed her with Auto Immune Liver Disease which is a non A B or C for of Heptatis that is non-transmittable. For the longest time they were unsure of the cause and now they believe that the high dosages of Tylenol over the period of 6 years between pregnancies caused her already weak liver to a point of no return.
So I would not dismiss this as being non important as my mother in law so loving refers to it. I am struggling with it now with the same threat of biopsy (my mother had them every 3 years and they are no fun). I am taking some herbal meds (Apple Cider Vinegar, Liver SF-13, and a Fat Metabolizer) along with exercise and WW. IT is helping hopefully none of us will have to have a biopsy.
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A couple of months ago I had routine blood work done...cholesteron etc that I get done everey year...except this year my liver numbers came back at 98.
Doc ordered a total liver panel and the numbers came back at 102. 2 weeks later it was 200 and a week after that it was 435!
She pulled me off met immediately and ordered a liver ultrasound...came back fatty liver, so then we tested for hepatitis A, B and C...nothing.
Finally as a last resort before ordering me to get a liver biopsy and in week 6 of being stuck all the time, she tested for Epstien-Barr.
Epstien-Bar is the virus that causes mono nucleosis, but it can also affect other organs. In me, it manifested as viral hepatitis. But I was completely asymptomatic...I may have been tired, but it was nothing out of the ordinary, so much so that I don't remember really.
Bbut it suddenly explained the 'flu' that my boyfriend couldn't shake. I had given him mono without ever contracting it myself. It's been 7 months now and my liiver numbers are coming down but are still not in the normal range. I'm due to get it checked again this week.
But it's worth a shot to check for odd things...you don't mention your age, but it coculd be mono if you're of the college age range.
Good luck figuring out what you have there, the liver is an odd and quirky thing.
I had a repeat case of mono for 3 years when I was in my teens. They screened me for everything spleen, liver, kidneys etc. My doctor was so afraid of the damage it could cause. My liver enzymes thankfully did not become elevated at the time. A girl I went to high school with had her spleen "ruptured" because of advanced mono damage. Fortunately, she was rushed to the emergency room and was taken care of and did not die from it.
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Ok now im worried. Ive also recently had bloodwork done by my endocrinologist because im diabetic.I got the results back in the mail a week ago. Everything was fine except my doctor told me that two of my liver enzymes were mildly elevated. Reading the previous post has got me concerned. I dont see my PCP until Dec 1st. Guaranteed, I will be asking her about these test results and my liver.Hopefully everything will turn out fine. I just wont be able to stand finding out another thing is going wrong in my body.
__________________ Monique(27) DH(31) Dx: PCOS-1999, Diabetes II-2005 Aiden James born 6/17/08 1 Angel Baby due to pPROM and Inc. Cervix (7/20/06) 1 Furbaby Brownie the Chihuahua
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Three years ago I had some tests done. I thought everything was fine because my dr. never said otherwise. Anyway, I went to see him this summer for itchy skin and said hmmm the las time that you had a liver test it showed slightly elevated liver enzymes. Hmmm, I wonder why he never told me. Anyway, we retested and the test were normal. I think I was taking something at the time, but he says it could have been my work environment (I work next to a lab). So you never know...
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I just made a random search on this forum about liver and liver enzymes today after a meeting with my doctor this morning. My PCOS was confirmed but among other results that came in were liver enzymes, and they were mildly elevated. The doctor asked me if I was in any risk group for liver disease but I do not drink, I take no medications, and in general do not know much about liver and what affects it. The doctor found about it after making a general chemical analysis to see if everything was ok after almost two months of abnormal spotting. Until I browsed this forum, my liver problem seemed to me unrelated to PCOS, but now it is different. This goes a long way to reveal helpfulness of this website and discussion board.
Also, I would like to throw out a question here: I read online today that elevated liver enzymes can be caused by various things, among them gallstones (also obesity--which probably has a more direct connection to PCOS). I used to have gallbladder dyskenisia (I am not sure if I still have it, my mother, pediatrician by the way, brushed it off as unimportant) and I am wondering if anyone can relate to this. Can dyskenisia, PCOS, and liver disease be all associated in some way?
This case just got me thinking about my ignorance about my own body and especially lack of awareness about the interconnected nature of my organism and its functions. Thanks for sharing, everyone. It was very helpful.
Liver problems 
