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K70.42: Acute-on-chronic alcoholic liver failure

Your liver has stopped working properly because you have drunk too much alcohol over a long period of time.

The liver is an important organ on the top right of the abdomen. For example, it helps with blood clotting and detoxifying the body. Nutrients from food are processed in the liver.

Alcohol is broken down in the liver. Too much alcohol over an extended period of time damages the liver. Sometimes the liver is damaged so severely that a part of the liver tissue necrotizes. As a result, the liver can no longer function properly. When the liver no longer adequately fulfills its functions, this is also called liver failure.

First you had a liver disorder for a long time. With this type of liver disorder, the liver performs its tasks more poorly than normal. Because of a certain trigger, your liver is now even less able to perform its tasks. This deterioration has happened over a short time.

Liver failure can make a person feel weak and tired, and take away their appetite. There may also be a great increase in the size of the waist, or the abdomen may be painful. The whites of the eyes or the skin may turn yellow. You may also bleed more intensely and for longer if you injure yourself. A liver that is no longer able to work properly indicates serious illness.

Additional indicator

On medical documents, the ICD code is often appended by letters that indicate the diagnostic certainty or the affected side of the body.

  • G: Confirmed diagnosis
  • V: Tentative diagnosis
  • Z: Condition after
  • A: Excluded diagnosis
  • L: Left
  • R: Right
  • B: Both sides

Further information

Note

This information is not intended for self-diagnosis and does not replace professional medical advice from a doctor. If you find an ICD code on a personal medical document, please also note the additional indicator used for diagnostic confidence.
Your doctor will assist you with any health-related questions and explain the ICD diagnosis code to you in a direct consultation if necessary.

Source

Provided by the non-profit organization “Was hab’ ich?” gemeinnützige GmbH on behalf of the Federal Ministry of Health (BMG).