Liver Diseases

The liver lies on the right side of the abdominal cavity beneath the diaphragm. It has many functions, including the metabolism of fats, conversion of glucose to glycogen, production of urea, amino acid synthesis, storage of vitamins and minerals, filtration of harmful substances from the blood, and maintenance of the proper level of glucose in the blood. The liver is also responsible for producing about 80 percent of the cholesterol in the human body. Liver disease is a broad term describing any number of diseases affecting the liver. Many are accompanied by jaundice, caused by increased levels of bilirubin in the system. The bilirubin results from the breakup of the hemoglobin of dead red blood cells; the liver normally removes bilirubin from the blood and ...