Liver Support with TCM
Overview |
This information is
for educational purposes only.
Materials regarding herbs have not been evaluated by the
U.S. Food & Drug Administration and are not in any way a
replacement or substitute for professional medical diagnosis and
treatment. Persons with specific medical illnesses are advised
to seek professional care. |
HCV is an immunopathic virus. Thus, most of the liver damage it causes is due to
the body's inadequate immune response, especially
auto-immune reactions. In the case of acute HCV infection, immune
tolerance (insufficient reaction) causes the infection to become
chronic.
The relationship between the severity of the liver cell damages and the
viral count is weak at best. "It seems that it is more important 'how'
your body responds to the presence of the hepatitis C virus in your
liver than 'how much' virus is in your liver that counts." (Howard
Monsour, M.D., Viral Counts - Do We Need Them? Hepatitis, Jul/Aug 2001,
p. 22)
In chronic hepatitis, over-active humeral immunity causes gamma-globulin
levels to rise, which form the circulatory immune complex (CIC). When
CIC deposits in the liver, joints, and skin, it causes inflammation. It
is also the cause of cryoglobulinemia, a common complication
of hepatitis C in which cold-sensitive globulin in the blood causes
arthritis,
skin rashes, and vasculitis. In cellular immunity, T suppresser
cell function insufficiency and T helper cell hyperactivity causes
the persistence of liver inflammation.
If the patient is a non-responder to Interferon based treatments, there
must be an alternative route for health management.
TCM has no effective solution for the eradication of the HCV virus, but
it does offer ways to protect the liver from excessive damage and to
maximize the patient's overall liver functions and quality of
life.
Normalizing liver enzyme levels and controlling inflammation are
crucial
factors in changing the prognosis of hepatitis C. Inflammation causes
fibrosis (scarring), which can lead to cirrhosis. Therefore, in order to
halt the progression of chronic liver disease, controlling inflammation
is crucial. If the liver is not actively inflamed, the median time for
the development of cirrhosis is 80 years (Mathurin P. Moussalli et
al., Hepatology< 1998; 27:868-72).
Since this is a normal life span, controlling inflammation by
protecting the liver
is the main objective of TCM supportive protocols for
HCV.
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