A doctor or specialist may decide to run a liver enzyme test if he suspects that there may be damage or disease of the liver. The patient may be exhibiting problematic signs or symptoms such as nausea, vomiting, fatigue, stomach swelling, leg swelling and jaundice. Jaundice is a yellowing of the skin. Another symptom that may prompt a liver enzyme or liver function test is weight loss. Massive sudden weight loss may prompt a physician to run a special panel of tests that check the liver for how it functions. The liver is responsible for a variety of functions, so many enzymes are involved in its process.The liver performs about 500 different processes in the body, so a problem with the liver can cause a host of other problems. Some of the functions that the liver is responsible for are manufacturing and breaking down proteins, storing vitamins, filtering the blood, facilitating immune activity, breaking down fat, producing bile and more. Diagnosing specific liver problems can be difficult, but the tests help to narrow the options down. Some of the enzymes that the test may look at are aspartate aminotransferase, alanine aminotransferase, bilirubin, alkaline phosphatase, L-lactate dehydrogenase, Gamma-glutamyltransferase and more. The doctor may find that some of these elements are raised. High levels of enzymes can be present for a number of reasons. The following are causes of elevated liver enzymes:
