Blood ammonia comes primarily from the bacterial breakdown of unabsorbed dietary protein in the intestine. Intestinal ammonia passes into the bloodstream and travels to the liver, which converts ammonia into urea. Urea subsequently passes from the...
Ammonia is a toxic by-product that results when the body breaks down proteins. A healthy person's liver converts ammonia into urea, a nonpoisonous substance excreted in urine. Several conditions and disorders that afflict children disrupt this...
Ammonia is produced when proteins are broken down in the intestines. If the liver is unable to effectively metabolize the ammonia, the levels rise in the blood. The American Association for Clinical Chemistry explains that the increased blood...
Ornithine transcarbamylase deficiency, or OTC deficiency, is a serious genetic disorder that affects the urea cycle, causing an accumulation of ammonia in the blood. It presents itself during infancy and is fatal in boys, but girls with some...
The liver removes toxic chemicals from the blood. When the liver is damaged from disease or injury, the cells of the liver are unable to function properly. They become unable to remove byproducts of metabolism such as ammonia resulting from...
The liver plays a vital role in most metabolic processes. One of these processes is the detoxification of ammonia in the blood. Ammonia is a by-product of normal protein metabolism and is also created by bacteria in the intestines. When the liver...
The liver and kidneys remove toxins from the body, which is one of the body's most significant jobs. Toxins are prevalent in the world, and the cleansing organs may be overburdened. The liver works by combining the body's toxins with enzymes and...
Ornithine transcarbamylase deficiency is the most common type of urea cycle defect. Urea cycle defects are a group of hereditary conditions that impair the removal of cellular waste products from the body into the urine. This causes the...
Ornithine transcarbamylase, or OTC, deficiency is a rare genetic disorder that occurs in approximately one in every 80,000 births, according to Genetics Home Reference. In OTC deficiency, a defective enzyme results in the inability to effectively...
Lactulose is a laxative your doctor may prescribe for you if you have liver problems or have a high ammonia count in your blood. You must take this medication exactly as prescribed and drink adequate amounts of liquids while you undergo therapy....
Liver cirrhosis refers to the end stage of chronic liver disease where continuous damage to normal liver tissue has resulted in the formation of scar tissue. Often individuals with mild to moderate liver cirrhosis exhibit no symptoms. If the...
Sodium benzoate is usually combined with sodium phenylacetate to treat hyperammonemia, a condition characterized by too much ammonia in the blood, MayoClinic.com notes. Conditions such as cancer, kidney and liver disease increase your risk of...
Cirrhosis, the final stage of liver injury, is characterized by severe tissue scarring that blocks blood flow through the liver. Without proper blood flow, the liver shrinks and function continues to decline. Without a healthy liver, your body...
Cirrhosis is the scarring of the liver, which develops due to chronic damage being done to the liver. Normally, a healthy liver helps to detoxify the body, control infection, make proteins, produce bile and process nutrients and hormones. Bile is...
Cigarette smoke, whether inhaled firsthand or secondhand, causes a number of dangerous side effects. The smoke contains a number of toxic chemicals that can damage your heart, lungs, and increase your risk of developing cancer. According to the...
Ornithine transcarbamylase, or OTC, deficiency is an inherited disorder that occurs in approximately one of every 80,000 births, according to Genetics Home Reference. It is caused by a mutation in the OTC gene which produces a specific enzyme...
Your doctor may prescribe lactulose if you have liver disease, such as cirrhosis. You might expect lactulose to affect your hemoglobin levels, because your liver is involved in hemoglobin metabolism, but lactulose does not play a major role....
Topamax is an anticonvulsant that is used to treat seizures in patients with epilepsy, as well as treat migraine headaches and bipolar disorder. Bipolar disorder is a psychiatric disorder characterized by cycles of manic and depressive episodes...
Cirrhosis is a disease of the liver. The function of the liver is to metabolize wastes, aid in digestion, purify the blood and fight infection. When a patient has cirrhosis, scar tissue in the liver begins to grow and replace healthy tissue. When...
Cirrhosis, a chronic liver disease, occurs when the liver cells become damaged leading to the buildup of scar tissue. Viral hepatitis and excessive alcohol consumption commonly lead to cirrhosis. Cirrhosis develops slowly over time, often only...
As your liver fails, your ability to absorb nutrition from food decreases. Your liver no longer processes protein, so a low protein diet is recommended. Your diet changed to help your liver function optimally at decreased capability. However, this...
Severe liver problems can, in some cases, cause lactose intolerance, a disorder that occurs when your intestines don't produce an enzyme called lactase. Liver problems can lead to bacterial overgrowth in the small intestine, which could cause...
Cirrhosis of the liver describes a disease of progressive tissue destruction characterized by the replacement of hard fibrous tissue riddled with nodules. This disease typically becomes chronic, and often patients are unaware of the disease...
Habitual alcohol abuse contributes to the majority of liver damage cases commonly referred to as Laennec's cirrhosis of the liver. According to the American Academy of Family Physicians, between 60 and 70 percent of cirrhosis cases are caused by...
Hepatitis C is a liver disease caused by the hepatitis C virus (HCV). During the final stage of this deadly disease, the patient is likely to experience rapid deteriorating in his cognitive functions. This condition is called hepatic...
Cirrhosis of the liver is the final stage of damage in liver disease. Although cirrhosis is commonly associated with alcohol use, any liver disease, including hepatitis and diseases such as cystic fibrosis and primary biliary sclerosis, can cause...
Alcohol abuse and hepatitis C are the most common causes of cirrhosis in the United States. Cirrhosis is the final stage of liver disease and is characterized by severe scarring of the liver tissue. This tissue prevents blood from flowing through...
Topiramate is the generic name of a medication called Topamax. Topiramate is an anti-epileptic medication that has many additional off-label uses, including to promote weight loss. Although people have experienced weight loss as a result of this...
L-arginine is a chemical that was first discovered in 1886. It was later found to be critical to your body's production of urea, a waste chemical used to removed toxic ammonia from the body through excrement. L-arginine is also used to form...
