Can Liver Enzymes Be Elevated By Bronchitis?

Bronchitis can affect liver enzymes, as the body fights off an infection, causing inflammation throughout the body, including the liver. This can lead to an increase in liver enzymes, such as alanine transaminase (ALT). Elevated liver enzymes often indicate inflammation or damage to liver cells and can be caused by various diseases, medications, and conditions.

Liver enzymes can be elevated due to liver diseases like fatty liver disease, infections, other medical conditions like metabolic syndrome, or other medical conditions. Acute and chronic bronchitis can progress to pneumonia, secondary infections, and COPD. Liver disease can lead to complications that affect the lungs, such as the buildup of fluid around the lungs or high blood pressure in the arteries that lead to the lungs from your heart.

Abnormal liver tests during hospitalization with SARS-CoV-2 or influenza infections are common and may differ in their time course and reflect disease severity. Patients with a low albumin or raised ALT are significantly more likely to have elevated liver enzymes.

Liver disease can also lead to complications that affect the lungs, such as the buildup of fluid around the lungs or high blood pressure in the arteries that lead to the lungs from your heart. The efficacy of steroid treatment may depend on the cause of elevated liver enzymes.

In summary, liver disease can lead to complications that affect the lungs, such as the buildup of fluid around the lungs or high blood pressure in the arteries. Understanding the causes of elevated liver enzymes is crucial for managing the condition and managing the symptoms associated with it.

What organs are affected by bronchitis?

Bronchitis is the sudden development of inflammation in bronchial tubes—the major airways into your lungs. It usually happens because of a virus or breathing in something that irritates the lungs such as tobacco smoke, fumes, dust and air pollution.

• Key Facts. Bronchitis is temporary and usually does not cause any permanent breathing difficulties.
• The infection usually lasts for a week to 10 days, but the cough can continue for several weeks.
• Bronchitis usually gets better on its own without the need for medical treatment.
• It is different from chronic bronchitis, a chronic disease that is part of COPD.
• Young children, the elderly and people with major health conditions are the most at risk.

How Acute Bronchitis Affects Your Body. In bronchitis, cells that line the bronchi become infected. The infection usually starts in the nose or throat and travels to the bronchial tubes. When the body tries to fight the infection, it causes the bronchial tubes to swell. This causes you to cough. Sometimes it is a dry cough, but often you will cough up mucus (sputum). The swelling also narrows your airways, allowing less air to pass through, which can cause wheezing, chest tightness and shortness of breath. With time, the immune system can fight off the infection and your airways return to normal.

Can upper respiratory infection cause elevated liver enzymes?

Background. In children and adults with acute respiratory tract infections (ARTI), elevations of serum liver enzyme activities are frequently observed in clinical practice. However, epidemiological data particularly in the pediatric population are very limited. The aim of this study was to assess the incidence of hepatic involvement, to identify the viruses and to analyze risk factors in children and adolescents with ARTI in a real-world setting.

Methods. We report on a prospective, multicenter, non-interventional study with 1, 010 consecutive patients aged 1–17 years with ARTI who consulted a physician within 5 days after onset of symptoms. Laboratory blood tests and PCR virus detection in nasopharyngeal lavage were performed at first presentation and after 3–7 days. Patients with elevated activities of serum liver enzymes (ASAT, ALAT, and γ-GT) were determined in local laboratories and values were normalized by dividing by the individual upper limit of the normal range (ULN). The resulting index ( 1 means above ULN) allowed to compare results from laboratories with different reference ranges.

Results. Laboratory test results of 987 patients were available at first visit. 11. 1% (95% CI: 9. 2–13. 3%) exhibited an elevation of ASAT, ALAT, and/or γ-GT activities. Virus DNA or RNA was identified in nasopharyngeal lavages of 63% of the patients. 12. 2% of patients with positive PCR and 9. 7% of those with negative PCR ( p = 0. 25) had elevated serum liver enzyme activities. The highest rates were observed in patients with a positive result for influenza B virus (24. 4%) followed by human metapneumovirus (14. 6%), and human coronavirus (others than SARS-CoV-2) (13. 6%). The rate of children and adolescents with ARTI and elevation of serum liver enzyme activities correlated with the virus species and with overweight of the patients but did not differ in patients with or without previous medication intake.

What is the most common cause of elevated liver enzymes?

Common causes of elevated liver enzymes include: Nonprescription pain medicines, particularly acetaminophen (Tylenol, others). Certain prescription medicines, including statins, which are used to control cholesterol. Drinking alcohol.

What is an alarming liver enzyme?

Aspartate aminotransferase (AST) and alanine aminotransferase (ALT) are two liver enzymes measured in a blood test to check the health of your liver. High AST and ALT levels are a general sign of a liver problem.

Based on which enzyme is elevated—or if both are elevated—healthcare providers can make an educated guess as to the underlying cause of the liver problem and order additional tests. This may help diagnose diseases ranging from hepatitis and cirrhosis to liver cancer and liver failure.

When ALT and AST Levels Are Tested. ALT and AST are part of a comprehensive panel of tests known as a liver function test (LFT). An LFT may be ordered:

• If you have symptoms of liver disease, including jaundice (yellowing of the skin or eyes), dark urine, pale stools, nausea, vomiting, and fatigue
• To monitor the progression of a liver disease
• To determine when drug treatments should be started
• To check your response to treatment

Can flu cause high ALT levels?

The ALT level was elevated in 22. 2% and 34. 2%, and AST was elevated in 31. 8% and 41. 2% of patients with influenza and SARS-CoV-2, respectively. Only 1. 6% and 3. 2% of influenza patients had severe elevation in ALT or AST ( 200 IU/L) vs. 2. 1% and 4. 2% of SARS-CoV-2 patients, respectively. Median values of ALT, AST, ALKP, and gamma-glutamyl transferase (GGT) were significantly higher in patients infected with SARS-CoV-2 compared with patients infected with influenza.

The temporal pattern of abnormal liver tests according to the type of infection. To validate that the abnormal liver tests were largely transient and likely related to the acute illness, we compared the highest with the lowest values during hospitalisation. There was a clear and statistically significant difference between the highest and the lowest levels of liver tests during hospitalisation, for patients with abnormal values, for both influenza and SARS-CoV-2 infections ( Fig. S2 ).

We next analysed the timing of peak abnormal liver enzymes during hospitalisation ( Fig. 1 ). AST level peaked by day 4 of hospitalisation in ~80% of patients with influenza vs. ~60% of patients with SARS-CoV-2 and between days 6 and 16 of hospitalisation in ~16% of patients with influenza vs. ~30% of patients with SARS-CoV-2. The ALT peak was recorded by day 4 in ~70% of patients with influenza vs. ~55% of patients with SARS-CoV-2 and between days 6 and 16 in ~27% of patients with influenza vs. ~35% of patients with SARS-CoV-2.

Can a cold raise ALT levels?

DISCUSSION. Nonspecific reactive hepatitis is defined as a secondary hepatic injury induced by a non-hepatic disease, without parenchymal liver damage. It is common for patients with a respiratory virus infection to lack clinical presentations while showing increased ALT or AST levels, which then drop to normal levels, with a good prognosis upon improvement of the infection. The exact mechanism is unknown, but Polakos et al. reported that collateral damage seems to induce the condition, considering that apoptotic hepatocytes, antigen-specific CD8+ T cells, and Kupffer cells appear around the inflamed area, while the virus is not present in hepatocytes.

Other studies on nonspecific reactive hepatitis have reported that it occurs more frequently in younger age groups . In the present study, there was no significant difference between the age of patients with increased levels of either ALT or AST and that of patients with normal levels for both. However, when patients in the increased ALT and AST groups were separately analyzed, the mean age of patients in the increased ALT level group (16. 0±35. 8 months) was significantly lower than that of patients in the normal group (25. 8±26. 6 months). On the contrary, there was no significant age difference between patients in the increased AST level group and those in the normal group. This indicates that younger patients with respiratory virus infection are more vulnerable to nonspecific reactive hepatitis, and the degree of influence on hepatic function is better reflected via ALT than AST levels.

Studies have suggested higher incidences of nonspecific reactive hepatitis in men than in women, but no sex-specific differences were found in the present study .

Can a chest infection affect the liver?

Pneumonia-associated jaundice is mostly thought to be a result of hepatocellular damage, because hepatic necrosis is often seen in liver biopsies of patients with pneumonia. In Mycoplasma pneumonia infection, an adult case with acute hepatitis without pulmonary manifestations was also reported by Lee et al.

Abstract. The liver is often involved in systemic infections, resulting in various types of abnormal liver function test results. In particular, hyperbilirubinemia in the range of 2-10 mg/dL is often seen in patients with sepsis, and several mechanisms for this phenomenon have been proposed. In this review, we summarize how the liver is involved in various systemic infections that are not considered to be primarily hepatotropic. In most patients with systemic infections, treatment for the invading microbes is enough to normalize the liver function tests. However, some patients may show severe liver injury or fulminant hepatic failure, requiring intensive treatment of the liver.

Keywords: Liver dysfunction, Liver function test, Systemic infection, Immunology, Liver failure.

Core tip: The liver is frequently involved in systemic infections, resulting in various types of abnormal liver function test results. It is very important to know the frequency and the patterns of abnormal liver function test results in each infection for the appropriate management of the patients. However, there have been few reports focusing on this issue. Here, we gather information from previous reports on this topic to provide a comprehensive summary that will help clinicians interpret abnormal liver function test results according to the associated infection.

Can a bacterial infection raise liver enzymes?

• Eighty-four patients with bacteremia were surveyed prospectively for biochemical markers of liver damage. Aspartate aminotransferase, alanine aminotransferase, alkaline phosphatase, and bilirubin levels were elevated in 44 (53%), 39 (47%), 45 (54%), and 5 (6%) of the patients on the first determination (2. 0 ± 0. 1 days after onset of fever) and in 11 (13%), 17 (20%), 26 (31%), and 1 (1%) on the second determination (5. 4 ± 0. 2 days after onset of fever), respectively. The elevation rarely exceeded three times the upper limit of normal. One patient had severe jaundice. An abnormality of at least one of these values was found in 55 patients (65%). There were no differences in site of infection, bacteria isolated, and outcome between patients with and without biochemical abnormalities. We conclude that in adult patients with bacteremia, elevation of liver enzymes and bilirubin is common, usually mild, of short duration, and of no prognostic significance.

Can pneumonia cause liver enzymes to rise?

Severe infection may occur par- ticularly in the elderly and immunocompromised. Multisystem involvement is not uncommon with presentation of altered mental status, elevated liver enzymes, and diarrhoea in addition to multilo- bar pneumonia.

What virus causes high liver enzymes?

• Non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD). This is probably the main reason for elevated liver enzymes in children in the U. S. today. Mild forms of this disease are very common
• the more serious form that over many years can lead to cirrhosis (scarring) and liver failure is called non-alcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH).
• Certain medicines. Drug-induced liver injury (DILI) is another possibility. Medications that can affect the liver include those for attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder, such as atomoxetine
• antibiotics, such as erythromycin or minocycline
• anticonvulsants, such as valproic acid
• or products containing acetaminophen. Drug-induced liver injury is often mild, but sometimes it can be severe.
• Viral infections. Many viruses can temporarily increase liver enzyme levels. These include rhinovirus (common cold) or Epstein-Barr virus (EBV), the virus that causes mononucleosis (“Mono”).

Rarely are elevated liver enzymes due to a serious or even life-threatening condition. Some of these less common causes include:

• Autoimmune hepatitis (AIH)
• Hepatitis B and C
• Diseases of the bile ducts, such as biliary atresia, choledochal cyst, or bile duct blockage from a gallstone or from pancreatitis
• Diseases of other organs, such as celiac disease, a disorder of the intestine (gut)
• Genetic (inherited) conditions, such as alpha-1 antitrypsin (AAT) deficiency (where a protein gets produced incorrectly and “gets stuck” in the liver), hemochromatosis (too much iron) or Wilson disease (too much copper)