Introduction:
My name’s Mike, I’m 32 and I live in the UK. I was diagnosed with UC in December 2011 after suffering with symptoms that were dismissed by my doctor as IBS for a year and a half.
After a bad flare up just after my diagnosis, I was put on Pred, and eventually stepped down completely after 6 months. I’m now taking 3g Pentasa.
Some more about me:
I’m a freelance web designer and love my job. I’m keen to meet other people with UC and to raise awareness of IBD in general.
My Symptoms:
After my most recent colonoscopy in September 2012, I was told I was now in remission, however, I still get some urgency and discomfort. Thankfully things are far better than they were, but still not as good as they could be, and my specialists think a change of drug might help.
Raised Liver Enzymes and UC
Hey everyone. I actually count myself as one of the lucky UC’ers, as my story has been pretty straightforward so far. After going through a terrible flare up a year ago (lots of blood, 10-20 BMs a day) Pred pretty much sorted me out, and Pentasa seems to be keeping me more or less in remission. I still occasionally get some blood, urgency and fatigue, but thankfully nothing like during my flare up. I’ve found that I can eat a pretty varied diet, with a few exceptions – nothing spicy or too greasy. My family have been great, and my girlfriend has given me so much support during this period. I’ve found care in the UK to be a bit hit and miss, some specialists have been great, others not so good, the main problem has been trying to see the same person twice in a row at my IBD clinic, which I find so important with a condition as personal as this.
Anyway, after getting my main symptoms more under control, the main issue I have now is with my liver. My specialist has noticed that my blood results have shown really high levels of liver enzymes, and they have consistently risen each time I’ve had blood tests (which has been roughly every three months since my diagnosis in 2011.) I’ve had an ultrasound on my liver, which didn’t show any abnormalities, and I’ve also recently had an MRI which I’m still waiting to hear the results from.
What I’m wondering is has anybody else had similar issues with their livers and UC? I’m just trying to get an idea if high enzyme levels are normal with this disease, and what they could be a sign of. I don’t think they are connected with any particular medication, as they were raised on my first blood test taken before I started taking UC drugs, but while I was inflamed.
written by Mike H
submitted in the colitis venting area
My name’s Mike, I’m 32 and I live in the UK. I was diagnosed with UC in December 2011 after suffering with symptoms that were dismissed by my doctor as IBS for a year and a half.
