How long will it take for a really badly damaged alcoholic males liver to restore to normal?
It depends on what you mean by “badly damaged.” If the damage has caused permanent scarring of the liver to over 80% or more, then the cirrhosis is too far advanced and will progress further no matter what you do. The only cure for cirhosis is a liver transplant. If the alcoholic continues to drink on top of having a damaged organ, it will only make the liver progress to having total failure more quickly. The best thing the alcoholic can do is to stop drinking and take it from there. He should see a gastroenterologist or hepatologist to find out how much actual damage is present. If it has not reached the point of being cirrhosis yet, then he could just stop drinking and his liver would heal in time. The liver can regenerate, but not when there is permanent damage done such as scar tissue.
If the liver cells become damaged, the immune system of the body responds to this damage and causes inflammation to develop inside the liver, which causes the liver to enlarge in size. Up to this point, if the alcohol is stopped and the inflammation is treated, then the liver cells can heal and the problem can be reversed. However, if this is not done, the inflammation will continue and this can cause the liver cells to die off and form scar tissue inside the liver. This scar tissue can then eventually stop the flow of blood through the liver. It can also stop the flow of blood to the functioning liver cells and liver cells that have just regenerated. This becomes a progressive, irreversible disease known as Cirrhosis of the liver. If a patient has been diagnosed with Cirrhosis of the liver, stopping the alcohol would help to slow down the progression of the disease, only. A liver biopsy and blood tests are needed to determine how far advanced a person may be in this liver disease. No
