How to Treat Wilson's Disease

According to the Wilson's Disease Association, Wilson's Disease affects only about one in 30,000 people worldwide. People with Wilson's Disease are unable to metabolize copper, which is present in most foods. The excess amount of copper present in people with the disorder leads to serious liver and brain damage, including cirrhosis of the liver and acute psychiatric and neurological problems. Read on to learn how to treat Wilson's Disease.

Instructions

• 1

  Begin following a low-copper diet right away. While not enough to manage the disease alone, lowering your copper intake takes a positive step toward minimizing damage due to buildup of this metal. Give these foods a wide berth: chocolate, liver and any other organ meat, shellfish of all kinds, dried beans, mushrooms and chocolate.

• 2

  Educate yourself about medication. To treat Wilson's Disease, you will have to adhere to a lifelong regimen of D-penicillamine or trientine hydrochloride. Both of these drugs help to remove copper from tissue.

• 3

  Take a B-vitamin complex to replace the body's supply as it is depleted by D-penicillamine and trientine. Be careful not to take any supplements that contain copper.

• 4

  Find out about zinc acetate, which prevents your intestines from absorbing copper. Zinc acetate also promotes copper excretion. Usually, zinc acetate is used as maintenance therapy after D-penicillamine or trientine hydrochloride have succeeded in reducing the level of unbound copper in the blood to less than 10 micrograms per deciliter. Zinc acetate may be the first line of treatment in a person who tests positive for Wilson's Disease, but does not exhibit its symptoms.

• 5

  Know that zinc acetate cannot be taken with either D-penicillamine or trientine hydrochloride. The combination binds to form a compound that has no effect on copper in the body.

• 6

  Be aware that zinc acetate may cause nausea at first, but this side effect usually eases. Eating a small amount of protein, such as a slice of lean turkey, with the morning dose helps. Don't take zinc acetate with bread or other carbohydrates, however.