Liver Disease in the UAE

Our Liver Disease Program

The Liver Disease Program at Cleveland Clinic Abu Dhabi’s Digestive Disease Institute offers comprehensive evaluation and treatment for the entire spectrum of liver diseases. The program offers outpatient evaluation for many liver diseases, including fatty liver disease, a common condition that is caused by the storage of extra fat in the liver. It can often be prevented or reversed by lifestyle changes. In some people it has no symptoms and doesn’t cause serious problems. In others, it can cause serious liver damage. Learn more about fatty liver disease here. The program also offers inpatient care for those with liver cancer and advanced liver disease, such as liver failure and related complications.

Treating Liver Disease

At the Liver Disease Program, our team of specialists are highly trained in a range of procedures for the diagnosis and treatment of liver disorders.

We offer the latest diagnostic technology, including Liver Elastography Fibroscan, a specialized, highly accurate ultrasound which determines the extent of liver damage, reducing the need for invasive biopsies.

We also offer advanced complex care, expert capabilities in minimally invasive surgery, as well as robotic hepatobiliary surgery, when suitable, for the resection of liver and bile duct tumors, which can enhance complex procedures, improve outcomes and offer faster recovery.

Learn more about treatment options for liver disease here.

Prevention

Your liver works incredibly hard, performing over 500 vital functions to keep you healthy. But if it is worked too hard, it can develop problems.

Luckily, most cases of liver disease are caused by risk factors that we can control, making liver disease preventable.

• Being overweight
• Viral infections (such as hepatitis)
• Exposure to toxins.

You can keep your liver healthy and prevent many types of liver disease by following these simple steps:

• Eat a healthy, balanced diet that is low in processed foods, refined sugars, and refined carbohydrates and high in fiber, fruit and vegetables.
• Increase exercise and maintain a healthy weight.
• Reduce toxin intake, including avoiding alcohol.

There are other causes of liver disease that we can’t control:

• Autoimmune diseases
• Genetic liver diseases
• Liver or bile duct cancer.

Learn more about the causes, symptoms and prevention of liver disease here.

Liver Cancer

Over time, liver disease can cause permanent damage to the liver, in the form of scarring (cirrhosis). As scarring builds up, serious complications can develop and the liver struggles to function properly. This can cause liver failure and liver cancer may develop.

Our Liver Cancer Program offers state-of-the-art facilities and advanced care to patients diagnosed with liver cancer. With a multidisciplinary approach to cancer care, our team of experts are leaders in the field of hepatic oncology.

We offer the most sophisticated testing and imaging methods to diagnose liver cancer, supported by advanced endoscopic and interventional radiology. Our team performs the latest robotic and minimally invasive surgical options, working together to provide care plans that are individualized for each patient.

Liver Transplant

A liver transplant is considered when a patient’s liver failure is irreversible and no other treatment options are available. It may also be considered for patients with liver cancer.

Cleveland Clinic Abu Dhabi offers the UAE’s only multi-organ Transplant Center. Our Liver Transplant Program is the only one of its kind in the UAE and was the first to carry out both deceased liver and living donor liver transplants. We work very closely with the Cleveland Clinic Transplant Center in the US, one of the largest and most successful liver transplant programs in the world.

Learn more about our Liver Transplant Program here.