P.I.T.S.

[ConcrndWife]

Hi, my husband had hep-c, but now after treatment with Harvoni he is hep-c free, but has very bad cirrhosis.  He was in and out of hospital with veracies until they placed a shunt in his liver (pits).  He appears to be great now but we know the shunt cannot stay in forever.  It runs many risks such as dementia and many others that come with unfiltered blood.  He does not drink now and has not for over a year, and is trying to eat the foods healthy for your liver.  My question is how long can that shunt safely stay in his liver?  And what happens if it stops working? Can they put in another until his liver is healthier or do we go back to veracies every third or fourth day? Any help at all will greatly appreciated.
                               Thanks so much
                                      Concrndwife

[flyinlynn]

MELD score is a composite score of 3 blood test results. If you know his creatinine, bilirubin, and his INR test results it is easy to determine his MELD score. 6 is the lowest and most healthy 40 is the highest and very ill. Most transplant centers require a score of at least 15 to place a patient on the liver transplant list. Depending on the transplant center how many patients on the list the average MELD score for transplant is around 30.

You can Google MELD score calculator if you know those test results

Good luck

[ConcrndWife]

Thank you for your input, and thank you for the web site. I will ask there. I will also find out about his meld score . We did not know the name of the test it refers to. Thanks again for yor input and time.

[ConcrndWife]

Thank you for your comment,  we live in a town that does not have many good doctors so his is out of town. I agree that I should ask him but we had to cancel our last appointment due to bad weather and roads and I'm just anxious. But I do greatly appreciate your input.

[flyinlynn]

You may wish to ask your question in the Cirrhosis of the Liver community

http://forums.hepmag.com/index.php?action=unread;all;start=0

there are some very knowledgeable people there who may have more information but you husbands doctor is your best choise for specific information relating to his individual situation.

Is he currently on the transplant list?

Do you know his MELD score? The MELD score is used to determine placement on the transplant list.

Good luck to you both
Lynn

[SurfsideGal]

HI there. I am happy to hear that harvoni worked for your husband. However, there is no one here who is a doctor and can answer your question specifically. I hope with time, your husband's condition will improve. Some with cirrhosis do get improvement in the histology of the liver. Some people with late stage disease, even though cured of the virus, still will need a transplant. You really need your husband's treating doctor to answer your very valid questions. I wish your hubby the best.