Hello my sister has advanced End Stage Liver Disease , cirrhosis , and is in severe abdominal pain constantly. As a result she has been mostly immobile for the several weeks now and spends the majority of her time, day and night, sleeping or laying down in her bed. She has recently complained of cramps in her legs and that her hands are tightening into a position as if she is holding a tennis ball. She does have acute ascites which may be causing or contributing to edema in her right leg. I sometimes massage her legs to help relieve some of the cramping however recently her right calf (with pronounced edema) felt very lumpy and mushy such that I could press on a part and an indentation would stay, her calf felt like a bag of mashed potatoes. What is going on here? Thank You.
Hello and welcome to ChatDoctorUsually end stage liver disease is not associated with pain. But if there is associated pain there may be involvement of nerves / nerve plexus in the vicinity of the liver secondary to disease process. The ASCIIs and the edema in the lower limb is due to the end stage liver disease. Now there are two options. Firstly a liver transplant, which is available in many countries (I don't know whether it is available in your country). However, your treating doctor will be able to tell whether it can be done in your case at this stage. Secondly, it is important to relieve the pain and the disabling edema to improve the quality of life. Therapeutic Chat Doctor.  This implies that fluid is removed from the abdominal cavity as soon as it is filled. Pain can be relieved by 