{"id":8236,"date":"2026-05-22T04:47:10","date_gmt":"2026-05-22T04:47:10","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/harmonygutandliver.com\/?p=8236"},"modified":"2026-09-04T17:31:13","modified_gmt":"2026-09-04T17:31:13","slug":"abnormal-liver-test-and-liver-health","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/harmonygutandliver.com\/blogs\/abnormal-liver-test-and-liver-health\/","title":{"rendered":"Abnormal Liver Test and Liver Health: Know from Expert"},"content":{"rendered":"

I am Dr. Arjun Prakash<\/strong><\/a><\/span>, a Consultant Gastroenterologist specializing in liver diseases. A frequent reason for patients presenting in an anxious manner to my clinic over the years has been a letter or message from their GP with a liver blood test result, e.g., \u201cYour liver blood tests have come back slightly abnormal.\u201d<\/i><\/em><\/p>\n

That is enough to send people into a spiral. Let me show you what it means, what I see in clinical practice, and when you actually have to take action.<\/p>\n

What Does an Abnormal Liver Test Actually Mean?<\/h2>\n

Liver function test<\/a><\/span><\/strong>\u00a0(LFT) is a simple test of the blood that looks for the amount of various enzymes and proteins that the liver produces (such as ALT, AST, bilirubin, alkaline phosphatase, albumin). The return of any of these outside the normal range is indicated as an abnormal liver test.<\/p>\n

But, this rings a bell with me that I give to all my patients: If the test comes back abnormal, it is not a diagnosis. It’s a cue that must be understood in the context.<\/p>\n

A mild elevation of ALT, for example, may be due to a few weeks of overindulgence in food and fluids, a recently prescribed medication, or even to strenuous exercise immediately prior to the test. However, if the results are frequently outside the normal range, this should never be ignored.<\/p>\n

The Patients I See Most Often<\/h3>\n

I see a true cross-section in my clinic of people who have abnormal liver test results. Here are a couple of typical patterns:<\/p>\n

The “routine check-up surprise”<\/h4>\n

A patient visits for a general check-up, usually prior to initiating a new drug, and their liver enzymes are elevated. They don’t experience any symptoms at all. This is the stage where early fatty liver disease<\/a><\/span><\/strong>\u00a0is frequently detected.<\/p>\n

The long-term medication user<\/h4>\n

Some drugs, such as long-term medication users and some antibiotics and anti-epileptics, can alter liver enzymes with time. When I see an abnormal liver test, I always look at the patient’s medication list very closely.<\/p>\n

The ‘I just wasn’t feeling right’ patient<\/h4>\n

Sometimes, people present with some vague tiredness, a little discomfort in the upper abdomen, or with nausea; then a blood test shows that the liver is under stress. These patients typically develop liver disease at an early stage<\/a><\/span><\/strong>, where we can make an impact.<\/p>\n

Common causes of abnormal liver tests include:<\/h3>\n

In practice, I encounter several of these types of situations quite frequently:<\/p>\n