DD's Elevated Liver Enzymes

Post by **tex** » Tue Apr 03, 2012 1:37 pm

Zizzle wrote:I wonder, is it our general predisposition to autoimmunity compared to men, estrogen/vaccine catalysts, or something else that explains this?

All I can do is take a wild guess that it probably is connected with hormones. The stress protein p38, (mentioned in the article that I cited), for example, is known to respond to, (among other things), growth hormones.

Tex

MBombardier · Post by **MBombardier** » Tue Apr 03, 2012 9:06 pm

I don't know about Lauren and the Hep B vaccine. She worked in a group home for the mentally/physically handicapped for some years, so I imagine she got it then. I just checked the shot records of my other three children, and they have all had three shots apiece. Great... Guess I'll have to check into this now.

Zizzle · Post by **Zizzle** » Wed Apr 04, 2012 8:24 am

Marliss,
For some reason, the triggering of autoimmune problems (MS, etc) is associated with women getting the vaccine series as adults. The infant Hep B vaccine may cause other problems, but there is less evidence there. Of course if my daughter decides to work in healthcare someday, I may be shooting her in the foot, knowing that someone may force the vaccine on her later (when it's more likely to cause problems). But hopefully by then, we'll have some real answers...or not

. I should also mention that people with celiac disease routinely fail to respond to the Hep B shot. They don't know why, but it just doesn't take. I have the DQ2 gene (as do you), as do my kids, so why bother? I had the Hep B Antibody test in pregnancy once, assuming it would be positive from the vaccine, but it was negative. An old neighbor used to work as a nurse in the GI ward of the hospital (lots of Hep B cases), and she received the vaccine series multiple, multiple times and never developed antibodies. Her employers were baffled. She moved away, but I wonder if I should warn her she probably has celiac susceptibility!

Anyway, the vaccine is given at birth (to all babies!) to protect the small handful of babies who's mothers have Hep B and didn't get prenatal care to catch it. Great public health policy

. It is estimated that antibody protection wears off in 10 years or so, so everyone vaccinated at birth will no longer be safe when they start having sex, injecting drugs, or whatever else that puts them at risk as grown ups. Again, brilliant

.

Deanna in CO · Post by **Deanna in CO** » Wed Apr 04, 2012 10:12 am

Zizzle,

You can choose to pass on the Hep B vaccine when your baby is born. My mom was a nurse who worked in the special care nursery in a hospital. While she is generally pro-vaccines, she strongly recommends opting out of the Hep B vaccine. She said they had quite a few babies brought back in with a low-grade fever in the next few days after receiving the vaccine. When newborns come in with any amount of fever, they have to do all kinds of tests including a spinal tap. If you wait until the baby is even a month old, they don't do all those tests.

My mom was convinced all those low-grade fevers were the result of the vaccine. So I opted out for both my daughters.

Deanna

Zizzle · Post by **Zizzle** » Wed Apr 04, 2012 10:29 am

Deanna,
Yes, I opted out for my son in the hospital and we started his series near his one-month check-up. They didn't push because he was born 3 weeks early. Of course moms need to have information to feel like they can or should opt out, when the default is the vaccine. With my daughter, my pediatrician accepted my alternative vaccine schedule and even made some recommendations to adjust it. When he asks about the Hep B and upcoming elementary school admission, I have to remind him that I have autoimmune issues, possibly triggered by my Hep B vaccine, and I'm just not willing to do it, so I file for religious exemption. I think he thinks I'll give in eventually, after all the other vaccines are complete. I don't think so.

MBombardier · Post by **MBombardier** » Thu Jun 07, 2012 8:35 am

Lauren was here over the weekend and told me that she gave into the MD pushing her to take Metformin. I'm not real happy about that since she had wanted to do this without medication. All I've read about Metformin is that it is for type 2 diabetes. Lauren is overweight, but I don't understand why the MD would put her on Metformin for autoimmune hepatitis.

As I read over this thread, I realized that I had forgotten to ask her if she had the Hep B vaccine as an adult. I will do that.

Zizzle · Post by **Zizzle** » Thu Jun 07, 2012 8:57 am

Marliss,
Metformin works by suppressing glucose production by the liver. Metformin is contraindicated in people with any condition that could increase the risk of lactic acidosis, including kidney disorders, lung disease and liver disease.

I cannot find any reference for using Metformin in AIH. It seems her doc would be using her as a guinea pig if he does. Does she have Type 2 diabetes?? There have been recent studies using Metformin to treat non-alcoholic fatty liver disease with some success. In these studies, they intentionally left out patients with AIH. If her diagnosis has been changed to NAFLD, then go for it I guess. But if it's still AIH, proceed with great caution!

http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1 ... 888.x/full

Some people are trying to make connections between Metformin use and triggering of AIH. That said, I cannot understand how any MD could put your daughter on this drug.

If your daughter on the GF diet yet?

Zizzle · Post by **Zizzle** » Thu Jun 07, 2012 9:26 am

This little article from the NCFA may give your daughter more reason to go or stay GF. It seems the GF diet can reverse or prevent hepatic failure in even the most serious autoimmune liver conditions. http://www.celiaccentral.org/Celiac-Dis ... isease/51/

MBombardier · Post by **MBombardier** » Thu Jun 07, 2012 5:11 pm

Wow, thanks, Zizzle!! I am going to send her the links to those articles.

I meant to mention that Lauren was tested for diabetes, and does not have it. Frankly, I almost hope that her diagnosis was changed to non-alcoholic fatty liver disease, but I doubt it.

Lauren is quite a large woman, so I wonder if the MD pushed the metformin thinking that it would help her to lose weight. I had not seen her in over two months and I expected to see some good changes in her physique because she's been GF for at least that long, but I didn't. She's in a live-in program where they try to feed her GF, but when you don't have to be GF yourself... when I picked her up on Saturday, she was eating French fries, not knowing that commercial fries are dusted with wheat starch.

She was so thrilled to be at our house where there is no gluten and she didn't have to wonder if what she was eating would send her to the bathroom. Yes--she has the WD when she gets glutened now. I didn't know all this, so I baked her a batch of GF whole grain muffins that she can eat for snacks, and will start dropping by with GF stuff for her.