02 Hepatophilic virus is the source of many diseases

Hepatophilic virus has intimate relationship with human health and is the direct or indirect cause of death caused by diseases.  “Hepatophilic virus is the source of diseases”.  This statement is based on clinical practice and is in no way fictitious.

The Seriousness of hepatophilic virus

    Health, in the course of human life, often signifies the history of disease formation by hepatophilic virus in the body.  Birth, growth, aging and death are all related to hepatophilic virus inside the body.  According to clinical observation, diseases at different stages of live are classified respectively into different forms, similar to forms of chronic hepatitis that are differentiated by traditional Chinese medicine.  The disease process shows increasing severity of symptoms and signs; the involved forms of disease also increase.  Clinically the patients past history often reveals the process of hepatophilic virus infection, the symptoms from mild to severe and from superficial to deep lying.

    Usually, people think that liver disease is confined to the liver, but nowadays the recognition of virus diseases is more and more penetrating and this concept is gradually changed.  The fact is :-

  1. Hepatophilic virus (including hepatitis virus and other hepatophilic viruses) may infect human being and form virus hepatitis. Clinically it may show various kinds of acute or chronic hepatitis symptoms.
  2. The infected body, due to development of chronic virus hepatitis, may show gradual impairment of liver function which affects all systems of the body and causes dysfunction of various organs. Clinically, it produces repeated dysfunctional symptoms of various systems of the body.
  3. Liver dysfunction may lead to diseases of extra-hepatic systems : in clinical practice, many common diseases are the result of hepatophilic virus infection. Here, it include many commonly encountered medical, surgical, gynecological, obstetrical, pediatrical and dermatological diseases.

Case Reports

       We select 4 cases for introduction with the aim of demonstrating that clinically many diseases are the result of extra-hepatic attack by hepatophilic virus.  The first case is misdiagnosed as hemoptysis of the lung, the second case is misdiagnosed as cholelithiasis.  The third case is abnormal vaginal bleeding. The fourth case as rheumatoid disease (in fact it is weakness of liver and kidney and bone malnutrition due to liver disease).  These patients had common features namely:

(1)    clinically, they shown some symptom types of traditional Chinese medicine present in chronic hepatitis patients.

(2)    abnormal margin of hepatic dullness by physical examination.  Through systemic traditional Chinese medical treatment, patients were clinically cured.


Brief introduction of classical cases (name of patients concealed)

Case 1

Diao xx (computer code 023), female, 65 years of age.
She was diagnosed in 1973 as pulmonary tuberculosis with severe hemoptysis and lung shadow of unclear nature.  Left partial lobectomy was performed in 1985 with no abnormal finding on biopsy.  During the postoperative ten more years, repeated chronic cough still persisted with intermittent bloody sputum and hemoptysis of large amount.

On June 14, 1998 the patient came to our clinic with the complaint of repeated coughing with large amount of sputum, shortness of breath and hemophtysis.  She had constipation alternated with diarrhea, dryness and bitterness of mouth causing the patient to drink at night. In the recent 3 years, she experienced repeated pain and redness of left knee joint with impairment of function.  On physical examination, the patient was extremely thin, tongue coating whitish and thick, borderline of liver dullness 4.5 cm below costal margin.  The left knee joint was slightly swelling with tenderness at the internal side.  The lower limbs showed pitting edema.

After taking 6 parcels of traditional Chinese medicine coughing decreased.  The sputum become white and its amount lessened.  The liver margin returned to normal. The next day after the second visit, she coughed up several mouthfuls of blood, bright red but not of large amount.  She continued the original formula and two days later, hemoptysis ceased and the traditional Chinese medicine treatment continued to 6 weeks.  At the end of the course of traditional Chinese medical treatment, there were no coughing and sputum ; the knee joint was normal only for slight pain on rising up from the squatting position.

Followed up to the present time, she made altogether four visits because of common cold but nor cough or hemoptysis was complained.  No enlargement of liver was seen and arthritis of the knee joint did not occur.

 

Case 2

Wong XX (computer code 0487) male, aged 39, senior policeman.

In May 1992, the whole family (husband, wife and two children) had chronic hepatitis and was clinically cured by traditional Chinese medicine in our clinic.  Due to professional reasons, he came to work in Paris where he repeatedly experienced fatigue, insomnia, dyspepsia, flatulence, abdominal pain, rectal tenesmus, increase of stools per day and had to go to toilet right after eating.   He was diagnosed as cholelithiasis in a local hospital and bladder stone was taken out one year before by laser surgery.  But after operation, the symptoms did not improve and he was further diagnosed as relapse of liver disease.  He went back to Hong Kong for traditional Chinese medical treatment.

On Jan 21, 1998, physical examination revealed enlargement of liver to the costal margin.  Three parcels of traditional Chinese medicinal drugs were administered leading to relief of symptoms and improvement of sleeping, flatulence and abdominal pain and also increase of farting.  The stools were normal, being once a day.  The liver was also normal. Twenty-four parcels of traditional Chinese medicinal drugs were taken and thereafter he stopped taking the medicine and his condition was followed up.

 

Case 3

Ching x (computer code 2037), female, aged 79.
She came to the clinic for the first time on Jan 12, 2000 with the chief complaint of repeated loin ache, long term constipation, weakness of lower limbs and walking disability. There were repeated vaginal bleeding for some years and in the recent six months, vaginal bleeding episodes became more frequent and the amount of bleeding increased.  She received excision of cervical polyp and diagnostic curettage in a large hospital but the cause was still unknown.  Considering the bleeding amount, hysterectomy as advised but refused by the patient’s relatives on account of oldness of the patient.  Long term administration of hemostatic drugs and fibrin agents to facilitate defecation did not stop the bleeding and when the latter became profuse, she was hospitalized.  Physical examination revealed an aged and thin patient; her tongue was red, fat and dry; the axillary ribs were not symmetrical, there was percussion pain over the hepatic region and liver was palpable 1.5 cm below costal margin.

After taking 2 parcels of traditional Chinese medicine, physical examination revealed a normal liver and after 5 parcels of medicine, she felt well a great deal.  She had stools three times a day and vaginal bleeding still occurred.  After 12 parcels, the bleeding amount was decreasing, the redness fading and the bleeding completely stopped after taking 2 weeks of traditional Chinese medicine.  Systemic treatment completed after 7 weeks of administration with the result of clinical cure.  Observation after stoppage of drugs did not show any bleeding.

 

Case 4

Huag X (computer code 0144) male, 64 years of age, metallic model worker.
He made the first visit on Oct 18, 1998 with the chief complaint of progressive swelling of all joints of the limbs (except spinal column).  The painful joints gradually stiffened; movements like extension and bending of the hand and fingers were limited.  Squatting was impossible and the hands and feet were weak; lifting strength was only half of previous normal condition.  The skin became purplish after lowering of room temperature and the limbs were cold.  Since onset of illness, the toe joins were painful at night and affected sleeping.  Administration of analgesics gave no effect.  These were shortness of breath, insomnia and awakedness; the urine was yellow and fatigue was extreme; consecutive movements of the limbs were difficult.  Three independent blood analyses did not reveal liver disease and x-ray examination in a hospital demonstrated rheumatoid arthritis.

Physical examination revealed a tall thin individual with dark skin and staggering steps.  The tongue margin was red and coating at the center was whitish and thin.  The gingival base did not show lead line.  The abdomen was navicular, liver dullness being 4.5 cm below costal margin, presenting percussion tenderness.  The finger joints were swollen with mild tenderness; they could not extend nor clinch to form a fist.  The limbs were cold and edematous.  The disease was diagnosed as chronic hepatitis causing weakness of liver and kidney and rheumatoid arthritis.  He was treated with traditional Chinese medicine according to chronic hepatitis.

In the course of treatment with 3 parcels of medicine, diarrhea occurred, stools being 1-2 times a day.  Sleeping was good.  Arthritic pain significantly relieved and bending of joints improved.  Shortness of breath was still present.  Liver was palpable at the costal margin with percussion tenderness.  The finger tips were cold and bending was possible in two fingers.  After 3 more parcels of medicine, pain of finger tips disappeared but fist clinching was still difficult. Liver returned to normal and lower limbs showed no edema.

When treatment continued to the second week, shortness of breath was still present, but fatigue disappeared.  Sleeping was good and the stools normal.  Yellowish color of urine became lighter.  The finger joints had markedly relaxed and the motility of fingers improved. Joint pain was relieved but the coldness did not improve.  The squatting mobility increased and edema of lower limbs decreased.

From the third week onwards, he could gradually clinch the fingers, hold a pen or lift something heavier and did not feel uncomfortable only for some numbness of the limbs due to keeping a posture for too long a time.  Treatment continued for 6 weeks and achieved clinical case.  Thereafter drug administration stopped.

 

TKP-021

Liver Disease and Systemic Diseases

    According to the book “Liver Disease and Systemic Diseases” edited by Huang Yuong Chi (Medical University of China and Beijing Union Medical University Publisher, Nov 1993 edition), the relationship between liver disease and systemic diseases is established.  Basing on large amounts of clinical and research data, it is demonstrated clearly that hepatitis infection may cause pathological changes of the body causing diseases of various systems, for example, hepatogenic pulmonary disease, hepatogenic cardiovascular diseases, hepatogenic gastro-intestinal diseases, hepatogenic renal diseases, hepatogenic hematological diseases, hepatogenic metabolic diseases, hepatogenic psycho-neurologic diseases, hepatogenic endocrine disorders and dermatological injury, etc.

These chapters described in detail the harm of liver disease to human health, particularly mentioned the co-existence of liver and extra-hepatic pathological changes and also their symptoms, signs, diagnoses, prevention, and treatment.  The data listed in the book demonstrated that in the late stage of liver disease, there may occur contemporary pathological changes of different systems and this in fact is the fatal result from direct or indirect injury to the human body caused by hepatophilic virus.

By WONG Kwok Hung
12th September 2000

(translated by Professor ZHENG Hua En)