Please help! result shows negative but dr think otherwise

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<p>I had my lab test done on 6/13, and ALT (ALANINE AMINOTRANSFERASE), SERUM was 37 (standard range: 0 - 36 U/L), and so my doctor sent me this message:
“Your liver marker is mildly elavated. I would like to rule out viral hepatitis.”</p>

<p>I did not follow-up after that. It wasn’t until last week, that I realize that the doctor diagnosed me as having hepatitis, so I asked for a lab test to be conducted, and ALT is now in range , 36.</p>

<p>He sent me a message: “Your liver marker went back to normal. You do not have viral hepatitis.”</p>

<p>When I asked him to please remove the hepatitis on my record, he replied:</p>

<p>"I would leave the “Hepatitis” on the problem list so we can continue to monitor your liver yearly. "</p>

<p>Somehow, I am not comfortable leaving this on my record when the test came out negative.</p>

<p>Besides, can you diagnose someone as having HEPA without the lab test conducted? He said it is because I have a “history of high liver marker ( twice before )”. My ALT before was 40, then 38, and then 36. It clearly shows decreasing pattern. </p>

<p>I am overweight, is that the reason?</p>

<p>I am totally confused. Please enlighten me. I am not sure why other variables seems to matter rather than the main test itself. </p>

<p>Should I just accept this in my record? </p>

<p>If you were in my situation, what would you do?</p>

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<p>This is not a medical issues forum. Please do not try to get this advice from an anonymous message board. </p>

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<p>As nosy as everyone is about your medical history these days, I would INSIST that it be removed. A statement to monitor liver due to testing in the high NORMAL range would be acceptable. </p>

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<p>Do a follow-up to make sure you don’t have hepatitis. They will test for hep antibodies. This is for your own health. and the health of others.</p>

<p>You do have the right to review and correct your medical records. If you are not diagnosed with Hep, that shouldn’t be on there as a diagnosis. </p>

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<p>I’m not a doctor, but:</p>

<p>That’s nuts. A few cocktails in the evening or a normal dose of acetaminophen can raise liver enzymes that high – and even higher.</p>

<p>If weight is a factor, your triglyceride levels are probably also high.</p>

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<p>Tests for viral hepatitis have been around for a while. Why has not your doctor ordered one?? Diagnosing one with a <em>viral</em> hepatitis based on an elevated liver enzyme is, IMO, unprofessional. You might have some other issues going on that result in the high reading:</p>

<p><a href=“http://www.m.webmd.com/a-to-z-guides/alanine-aminotransferase-alt”>http://www.m.webmd.com/a-to-z-guides/alanine-aminotransferase-alt&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;

<p>Time to find another doctor?!</p>

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<p>Ditto Tranquil- Insist it be removed and double check to make sure it is. That should not be there as a diagnosis. The statement of monitoring a high normal is acceptable.</p>

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<p>Liver functions tests (LFTs) are general tests, not tests for hepatitis. There are specific serum markers to look for actual viral hepatitis infections. Your numbers are not elevated. When they’re elevated, they’re in the hundreds! I’m not sure I’d go to your doctor, ever, lol. </p>

<p>The commenters are correct. This is not the place to look for medical advice. However, I CAN tell you that you should look around for a new doc. And get that diagnosis deleted. It’s absolutely not correct. </p>

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<p>Thank you all for the reply…I am now confident to have this record remove. I don’t know why the doctor seems hesitant to do it. </p>

<p>I’m glad to ask for advice here first, prior to seeing my doctor later this afternoon because I am really confuse and I am not sure if I have the right reason for having it remove. I worry that we might have lengthy discussion about it , and I ended up just accepting what he says. </p>

<p>I don’t mind at all to take further test, but until it is proven that I have hepa, this shouldn’t be on my record. </p>

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<p>Are you on a statin? I get my blood tested every 6 months because I am on a statin. My doctor’s main concern is that statins often have an effect on liver function. on a scale like that (normal = 0 - 36)I can’t see how a reading of 37 is a problem but 36 is “ok, never mind”</p>

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<p>You need a new doctor. </p>

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<p>I am going to disagree slightly with the other posters here. </p>

<p>First, to the best of my knowledge, hepatitis is a broad term that describes the effects on the liver more than the cause itself - that is why there are so many types of hepatitis. He suspected viral hepatitis, then ruled it out because if it HAD been viral then your levels would have kept rising. That does not rule out other types of hepatitis, nor other types of liver damage.</p>

<p>Second, while I am not familiar with the danger points of that specific enzyme level, realize that “reference levels” are just an attempt to draw a line between “probably okay” and “there’s a problem here”. When you are riding that line, concern is warranted - the high levels on those tests often assume a healthy person with an unhealthy spike, and if you are repeating that then it is essentially a diagnosis of “mildly sick, all the time”. The fact that it is decreasing is nice, but depending on the time span of those tests it may not be coming down to really safe levels.</p>

<p>I would encourage you to seek out a second opinion (since you are concerned), but I am not sure that your current doctor has committed any real sin here - it is a confidential file, and represents a combination of his medical opinion and diagnostic shorthand.</p>

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<p>I agree that we can’t give medical advice, but whether or not you have hepatitis isn’t the question ( we can’t make an opinion on that) The concern you have is over the contradictory statements:</p>

<p>He sent you a message: “Your liver marker went back to normal. You do not have viral hepatitis.”</p>

<p>When you asked him to please remove the hepatitis on my record, he replied:</p>

<p>"I would leave the “Hepatitis” on the problem list so we can continue to monitor your liver yearly. "</p>

<p>Basically, your doctor tells you that you do not have hepatitis, but wants to leave it on your record because he wants to check it yearly.
Ok fine, but it doesn’t have to be a diagnosis he could also leave a note on the chart “check liver in a year”.</p>

<p>I assume he is using electronic medical records, and while I am not familiar with them, I think there might be some sort of checklist. You have the right to not have “hepatitis” as a diagnosis on your chart if you don’t have it. </p>

<p>I would ask him to remove it. It might make your insurance rates go up, or make it harder to get insurance in the future. </p>

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<p>NJres, I am not taking any prescription, and my only health condition is overweight. The only concern in my recent lab test, is mild liver and cholesterol. </p>

<p>cosmicfish,he had diagnose me without waiting for my lab test result. I did not took the test until I saw that he marked hepatitis on my record. If he suspects hepatitis, why not have me take further test first before making his decision final? This part is what bothers me. </p>

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<p>pennylane, YES, I guess that’s really my main concern here is that hepatitis is on my record even when there doesn’t seem to have enough evidence that I really have it. My ALT is not even abnormally high, as others point out it is on high NORMAL range. </p>

<p>He could have at least waited until the LAB TEST result. </p>

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<p>Cosmicfish, please read the OP. it states that the diagnosis is “viral hepatitis”. </p>

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<p>

He diagnosed you with hepatitis based on a lab result (the 37 you noted at the beginning), he wanted further tests to see if it was viral or not. But he could make a diagnosis of hepatitis based on that first test, he just could not clarify what type.</p>

<p>

Hepatitis just means that at the time of the test, it appears that your liver was inflamed. It does NOT mean Hep B or Hep C or viral Hep or any of the other scary things that people think about, but it does still mean hepatitis*. It may not mean a variety of hepatitis that is going to be measurably damaging, it may not mean a variety about which there is anything to be done, but it is still hepatitis and something to be observed.</p>

<p>Please remember that the public often misuses medical terminology. Everyone thinks of contagious diseases, but hepatitis without anything else (like a “B” or “A”) is just Latin for “inflamed liver”, and that is all. Using it in a medically correct manner in a medical document should not be a concern.</p>

<p>**: To the best of my knowledge. I’m not a doctor. *</p>

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<p>

I just reread the OP, and I see no such thing. I see the following communications from the doctor:</p>

<p>

The first communication does not state viral hepatitis, it just poses the possibility. The second rejects it. The third mentions hepatitis but without mentioning “viral”, and I assumed that was both intentional on the part of the doctor and faithfully repeated by the OP. The fourth gives the reason for concern.</p>

<p>I think the question for the OP should be “What, exactly, does your record say?”</p>

<p>If it says there was a concern about viral hepatitis, well, that is just a concern, not a diagnosis. If it says the OP had/has viral hepatitis, that is clearly incorrect and should be changed or removed. If it says that the OP had/has hepatitis but does not specify viral, then that appears to be a reasonable diagnosis given the test results.</p>

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<p>Hahaha…I have a feeling this is exactly what my doctor is going to say when I ask for the record to be remove…</p>

<p>I don’t know why we always go out to eat in a buffet, whenever I have a lab test the next day, that’s probably what mildly elevated my ALT. Now, I am diagnosed with HEPATITIS just for that mild elevation. </p>

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<p>So, @bigelow‌, does your record specify that you have or had viral hepatitis? Because asking him to remove the work hepatitis from your record otherwise appears foolish.</p>