Liver abscess (patient information)

(Condition)
Overview
What are the symptoms?
What are the causes?
Who is at highest risk?
Diagnosis
When to seek urgent medical care?
Treatment options
Where to find medical care for (Condition)?
Prevention
What to expect (Outlook/Prognosis)?
Possible complications
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Editor-In-Chief: C. Michael Gibson, M.S., M.D. [1]; Associate Editor(s)-In-Chief:

Overview

Pyogenic liver abscess is a pus-filled area in the liver.

What are the symptoms of Liver abscess?

• Chest pain (lower right)
• Clay-colored stools
• Dark urine
• Fever, chills
• Loss of appetite
• Nausea, vomiting
• Pain in right upper abdomen (more common) or throughout the abdomen (less common)
• Unintentional weight loss
• Weakness
• Yellow skin (jaundice)

What causes Liver abscess?

There are many potential causes of liver abscesses, including:

• Abdominal infection such as appendicitis, diverticulitis, or a perforated bowel

• Infection in the blood

• Infection of the bile draining tubes

• Recent endoscopy of the bile draining tubes

• Trauma that damages the liver

The most common bacteria that cause liver abscesses are:

• Bacteroides

• Enterococcus

• Escherichia coli

• Klebsiella pneumoniae

• Staphylococcus aureus

• Streptococcus

In most cases, more than one type of bacteria is found.

Where to find medical care for Liver abscess?

Directions to Hospitals Treating Liver abscess

Sources

• http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/ency/article/000261.htm