Initial Changes

In the early stages of liver disease caused by alcohol consumption, there are fatty changes in the liver, although you may not notice anything at all is happening. Such liver changes are reversible, but they can only be detected by blood tests. The damage is usually reversed by abstaining from alcohol.

Advances Effects

Individuals with more advanced symptoms of decompensated liver disease will know they are ill if they pay close attention to their bodies. Most of the symptoms include excessive lack of energy and exhaustion. Sometimes there's a significant amount of itching on the body. When the disease advances far enough, there are more definite signs to recognize. The whites of the eyes are no longer white but yellowed and the skin is jaundiced. Urine becomes dark and the bowel movements become lighter and pale.

Final Symptoms

In the final stages of decompensated liver disease, the gastrointestinal tract begins to bleed and the sufferer will experience mental confusion. One of the most prominent features is the swelling of the abdomen due to fluid retention. A bulbous nose is often caused by spider angiomata or "spider veins" on the face. There is frequently also a speckled mottling of the palm due to the changes in the body's hormones. Often a musty breath is present as well.

Fingernails

Three types of changes occur in the fingernails due to decompensated liver disease. One is clubbing of the nail between the nail fold and the plate. The second, called Muehrcke's nail, will show up as two bands on the nails with normal nail color in between. Finally, Terry's nails is a condition which makes two-thirds of the nail white and the remaining third red. Both of the last two conditions come about due to the body's low production of albumin. The fingers no longer flex as easily as they previously did, causing malformation.

Sexual Changes

Men develop a mass on their nipples in 66 percent of the cases. They lose their sex drive and their testicles tend to shrink dramatically due to the suppression of the pituitary, hypothalamus or gonadal injuries.

Liver Size

While many people believe that the liver swells because the abdomen does, this is not always the case. Sometimes the liver actually shrinks or simply remains the same size but develops hard nodules. Occasionally the spleen swells, which results from hypertension brought about by the liver disease.