Hepatomegaly means enlarged liver. An enlarged liver may not always be palpable if it is slightly enlarged and a palpable liver is not always enlarged. causes of hepatomegaly are-
Infective Causes
- Cholangitis
- Amebiasis
- Schistosomiasis.
- Bacterial infections: Typhoid, brucellosis, tuberculosis
- Viral: Infective hepatitis, infectious mononucleosis
- Spirochetal: Syphilis, Weil’s disease
- Protozoal: Malaria, kala azar
- Fungal: Actinomycosis, histoplasmosis
- Parasitic: Echinococcus
Congestive causes
These are related to congestion of the liver
- Cardiac failure
- Cardiomyopathy
- Constrictive pericarditis
- Budd Chiari syndrome
Cirrhosis
Biliary obstruction
- Gall stones
- Strictures
Degenerative and Infiltrative Diseases
- Fatty degeneration
- Amyloid deposition
- Gaucher’s disease
- Niemann Picks disease
- Hodgkin’s disease
- Leukemias
Tumours
- Primary- Hepatocellular, cholangiocellualr sarcomas
- Secondary
Toxicity
Alcohol, arsenic, phosphorous, chlorpromazine.
