disorders of nutrition
Wilson Disease
Treatment of Wilson Disease
Dietary changes Drugs and zinc supplements Possibly liver transplantation People with Wilson disease must follow a diet that is low incopper. Foods to avoid include beef liver, cashews, black-eyed peas, vegetable juice, shellfish, mushrooms, and cocoa. People with this disease should not take any vitamin or mineral supplement that containscopper. Drugs that bind withcopper, such aspenicillamineortrientine, taken by mouth, are used to remove the accumulatedcopper. Zinc supplements can prevent the body from absorbingcopperand are used ifpenicillamineortrientineis ineffective or has too many side effects. Zinc should not be taken within 2 hours of takingpenicillamineortrientinebecause it can bind to those drugs and make them ineffective. For the rest of their life, people with Wilson disease must takepenicillamine,trientine, zinc, or a combination. Without lifelong treatment, Wilson disease is fatal, usually by age 30. With treatment, people usually fare well unless the disease was advanced when it was diagnosed. People who do not take the drugs as directed, especially younger people, may develop Liver Failure . Doctors recommend that people with this disease see an expert in liver disease on a regular basis. Liver Transplantation can cure the disease and may be lifesaving for people who have Wilson disease and severe liver failure or severe liver problems that do not respond to drug treatment. 