Liver Disease - What patients should know
Our livers keep us healthy by turning food into energy, filtering out toxins, and turning nutrients into chemicals our body can use. There are more than a hundred types of liver disease. Common causes can include viruses, autoimmune disease, poor diet, excessive use of alcohol, genetics, obesity, and reactions to drugs or chemicals. Early diagnosis of liver disease can prevent damage from occurring to your liver long term. The liver can repair and even regenerate itself, and liver disease can often be reversed If you work with your doctor to come up with a recommended treatment plan. Though many with liver disease do not feel sick, after a certain point damage to the liver cannot be reversed and can lead to liver failure, cancer, or death.
To prevent and treat liver disease, stay engaged with your doctor and attend preventative appointments. You should also provide your doctor with a detailed family history so they can better assess your risk of developing certain liver conditions. Your doctor may recommend lifestyle changes to decrease your risk. Make an appointment with one of the specialists at Granite State Gastroenterology to talk about your digestive health and the steps you can take to prevent liver disease.
What is autoimmune liver disease?
Autoimmune liver diseases occur when your body’s immune system attacks your liver. If left untreated, inflammation can cause cirrhosis of the liver, which can lead to serious health complications. The three most common autoimmune liver diseases include autoimmune hepatitis, primary biliary cholangitis, and primary sclerosing cholangitis. In order to diagnose autoimmune liver diseases, your doctor will order blood tests and you may also require diagnostic imaging studies. Talk to your doctor about treatment options if you have recently been diagnosed with an autoimmune liver disease.
Giving Thanks - Dr. Roalsvig
The Granite State Gastroenterology team is so grateful for our founder and leader, Dr. Roalsvig, for his leadership and years of service to his community. We are all wishing him a found farewell as he moves on to the next phase of his career. We’ll all miss him and we would all like to give thanks for the time
he has shared with us.
To My Dear Patients,
As you may know, I have been in practice in the Derry area since 1988. This has been a very rewarding experience for me over the years. I have learned so much from you, my patients. Helping people to overcome their difficulties and allowing them to return to a better state of G.I. health has been very satisfying for me.
The practices I have been part of have been through many changes and quite a few challenges. Since I founded Granite Sate Gl in 2003, we have continued to grow and improve the practice in so many ways. Dr. Taylor’s participation in our practice was immensely valuable.
As many of you know, I have been working part time for the last 2 years as a transition toward fully retiring. The time for this has now come. As of January first, I will no longer be seeing patients in the office or in direct clinical care. I will continue to assist the office in other ways that I can, to smooth the transition to new management.
Dr. Dainiak and Dr. McLean will be leading the practice going forward. We also welcomed Dr. Tobar to the practice this fall, and are actively trying to recruit additional physicians and advanced practice providers to fulfill the needs of our growing practice and the community. Karyn Loch, our Practice Manager has done an excellent job in building a well-functioning office.
I truly believe we have a great team of providers. I am confident that Drs. Dainiak, McLean, and Tobar, as well as our Advanced Practice Practitioners (Robin LaBerge PA, Allison Anastasoff ARNP, Stephanie Lynch PA and Alyssa Dunn PA) will be able to pick up where our relationship has left off and continue to provide you with compassionate and high quality care going forward.
Please contact the office to make arrangements for an office visit with one of these practitioners. I will be available to discuss with you which provider would potentially be the best fit for your needs and answer any questions you may have regarding how this transition will work.
Thank you for the opportunity and privilege to have been able to take care of you in the past. I will certainly miss seeing you (and often, your families) and miss partaking in the many other satisfying roles I have played in our medical community.
With warm regards,
Knut J. Roalsvig MD
Patient Education
Do liver cleanses work?
There are many products and programs out there that claim to be able to cleanse your body and improve your health. But are they safe? There is no proof that detox programs or products can fix liver damage, and many may actually harm your liver. Patients are experiencing injuries from dietary and herbal supplements more frequently, and some detox programs such as coffee enemas can even lead to infections to electrolyte issues. Green tea extract can even cause damage that is similar to damage caused by hepatitis. Some companies may even add ingredients in their detox products that can be harmful to your body and make false claims about results. Talk to your doctor about how you can improve the health of your liver with diet and lifestyle changes. They will be able to provide you with safe and effective treatment options to improve your overall health.
Office Updates
We are now seeing patients at our new location!
We’re currently seeing patients at our new location. Our new office is located at Main Street Medical Park at 6 Old Fremont Rd. in Raymond, NH! Contact us today at 603-432-8802 to make an appointment!