Customer Reviews

The Liver Book: A Comprehensive Guide to Diagnosis, Treatment, and Recovery

5 star:		(3)
4 star:		(0)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

but unfortunately, sometimes you have to learn about things you'd rather not. And when my good friend nuked his liver with alcohol and tylenol and nearly died, I had to find out what was up, because the staff at the hospital was really scaring me. This book, written in very clearly and from a very optimistic point of view, definitely answered most of my questions, and I am even a little more hopeful than I was when I began it. If you know anyone who drinks heavily OR already has liver disease, it's the book to read or share with them.

First off, this book deserves five stars for readability and good editing, and if you or a loved one have a liver disease this is very likely the book that you want. But the book falls far short of describing early symptoms (except for spider veins [which can have other causes - just ask someone with rosacea that never drank alcohol] and red palms) that could perhaps stop a liver disease while it is still reversible. Of course it does offer some tips on prevention - get tested/immunized for various viral hepatitis strains and abstain from alcohol - so I can't say that he avoids the subject completely. The one bit of information that I gleaned that may be worthwhile to me was a little tidbit about how a low white blood count may indicate that either alcohol use is preventing your bone marrow from doing its job or you could have an enlarged spleen that is hoarding WBCs (pg 133-34, alcoholic hepatitis). Like most texts written by MDs, the emphasis is on all the ways that they can cut on you and pump you full of drugs, rather than describing lifestyle factors (I'm mainly thinking diet and stress here) that can facilitate progression of the disease, but then that's because the medical profession can't flourish if there are only healthy people to look after... Perhaps if the author does a second edition he'll partner with a naturopath with the aim of helping folks prevent the disease and/or catch it far earlier in its progression?

This book is a basic primer on the liver and possible problems. It is not an in depth study on any particular aspect of liver disease. I knew very little about my liver and I wanted to know the basics before I did any further reading. This book was perfect for that purpose. It contains lots of general information on the liver and how it works. It gives a brief outline of most common diseases affecting the liver and their treatment in general. I was not disappointed. Now I will buy books that get more specific.

This book has been a great help to us what with dealing with Liver disease and awaiting a transplant.

Thank you Dr. Chopra for writing this so that we may not only learn how to deal with this condition but do it in a knowledgeable way. This book has also helped us to deal with out fears.