The liver is one of the vital organs of a person, which performs many functions. The main function of an organ is to protect it from harmful foreign substances that enter the body, that is, the liver is the main barrier in which the processing of "unnecessary" agents occurs. In addition, in the liver, the formation of blood proteins necessary for vital functions occurs. She also participates in the digestive process (production of bile, enzymes).
With many pathological conditions, organ functions suffer, this can be detected during the examination. Such conditions include pathologies of the hematopoietic system, some infectious diseases, hepatitis, cirrhosis of the liver and so on. There are many research methods, one of them is percussion, in which the size of the liver is determined according to Kurlov, soreness, shape. Thanks to percussion, an increase or decrease in the liver can be detected, which is a diagnostic sign of diseases.
Measurement technique
Kurlov’s liver size is measured along three lines: the midclavicular on the right, the median, and 10 intercostal space on the left, starting from the left front axillary line. Tapping starts on the right side
from the second intercostal space until the sound is dull, at this point mark the upper border of the liver, then mentally draw a straight horizontal line along the navel and begin to percussion along the midclavicular line upwards, while finding the lower border of the organ. The next line is the median, percussion is carried out from the navel up to the appearance of blunting. The last is the line drawn along 10 intercostal space to the upper border. Thus determine the size of the liver, the norm is 9, 8 and 7 cm (respectively lines).
Change in liver size in pathologies
With a deviation from the normal size of the organ, they begin to conduct further diagnostics. The size of the liver (according to Kurlov they are easy to determine) can vary both in the direction of increase, and vice versa. The increase - hepatomegaly - is observed in many diseases, among which the most dangerous are leukemia, chronic hepatitis, tumor processes of internal organs. The decrease in size can be seen in the extreme stage of cirrhosis, which is an unfavorable prognostic sign.
Age features
In young children, the liver takes up much more space in the abdominal cavity than in an adult. This is due to the fact that during the period of intrauterine development, it performs a hematopoietic function in the fetus. It reaches especially large sizes in newborns and children up to a year, then the size of the liver begins to gradually decrease with respect to the abdominal cavity. In the norm, familiar to adults, it will be a few years later.
If you suspect a disease, you should immediately consult a doctor for a diagnosis. The specialist must conduct a full examination of the patient, including percussion. Kurlov's liver size can be determined already in the early stages of the disease, but sometimes the study needs to be supplemented with laboratory and instrumental methods.