Hepatitis means liver inflammation. Viral hepatitis means that a person has liver inflammation due to a virus. Viral infection of the liver makes the liver swell up and stop working well. The liver is an important organ. It helps your body with these functions:Digests food, Stores energy, Removes poisons.
Hepatitis C is a disease of the liver that is caused by the hepatitis C virus, or HCV.Between 15 to 40 percent of people who get hepatitis C are able to fight off the virus during the early, or acute, stage, usually within six months. Between 60 and 85 percent of patients cannot get rid of the virus and develop a long-term, or chronic, hepatitis C infection. People with chronic hepatitis C will have the disease all their lives unless they are successfully treated with antiviral medicines.
The symptoms of acute hepatitis B infection develop within 1-6 months of when you first become infected with the virus, and include feeling sick, vomiting, abdominal pain, fever and feeling generally unwell. Some people develop jaundice (Peelia). This is due to build-up of bilirubin, which is made in the liver and spills into the blood in some liver conditions. Your urine also becomes dark yellow, your stools may go pale, and you tend to itch.
The hepatitis B virus can be passed to an infant during childbirth or shortly thereafter if the mother is infected.
The risk of becoming chronically infected depends on your age at the time of infection. Most newborns and about 50% of children infected with hepatitis B develop chronic hepatitis. Only a few adults infected with HBV develop the chronic condition.Most of the damage from the hepatitis B virus is due to the body's response to the infection. When the body's immune system detects the infection, it sends out special cells to fight it off. However, these disease-fighting cells can lead to liver inflammation.
Hepatitis D can only be acquired if the person has an active infection of hepatitis B. The virus cannot reproduce without the presence of the virus causing hepatitis B. If you have chronic hepatitis B and your symptoms suddenly worsen, your doctor should check for hepatitis D. The virus is spread through contact with infected blood and contaminated needles. You can also get the disease through sexual contact with someone who is infected.
The good news is that there is a safe and effective vaccine against the virus. In New Zealand this is on the immunisation schedule for infants and children up to sixteen years, free of charge through general practitioners. The course of vaccine for an infant consists of three doses scheduled for six weeks, three months and five months of age. Mothers who are carriers are identified by a blood test in pregnancy and their babies are offered protection by an injection of immune globulin at birth followed by a course of vaccine.
Immunisation at any age (from babies to old age) is very effective at protecting people against infection. If it is known (by a blood test) that a pregnant woman is a chronic carrier of hepatitis B, a baby can be immunised (given a vaccine) at birth to protect it from hepatitis B infection. The vaccine does not contain live virus, but uses a protein (called surface antigen) from the virus, so you cannot catch hepatitis from the vaccine.
By: Peterhutch
Friday, June 13, 2008
Thursday, June 7, 2007
How to prevent and treat hepatitis
In the prevention of hepatitis A you are recommended to wash your hands, eat only fresh cooked foods, drink only boiled water or bottled water, and do not eat vegetables or fruits that are not cleaned enough , if you travel in Mexico, eastern Europe and developing countries you may opt for a hepatitis A vaccination.
Symptoms of hepatitis vary depending on the cause of the illness and how much the liver has been damaged. Hepatitis may also result in pain or tenderness under the lower right rib edge due to the organ swelling. Symptoms of acute viral hepatitis may begin suddenly or develop gradually with flu like symptoms. Nearly all patients experience some fatigue and often have mild fever, loss of appetite, weight loss, and dehydration. Symptoms of progressive chronic viral hepatitis may be very subtle and no more than a mild persistence of acute symptoms for six or more months, fatigue is among the most common symptom affecting the quality of life of patients with chronic hepatitis C.
In the prevention of hepatitis B you should practice safe sex, inform your partner of your health state, do not share razors, brushes, needles, manicure tools that may have been contaminated. In the prevention of hepatitis C you are advised to practice safe sex, don't share razors or manicure tools or needles, limit alcohol intake, never share IV drug needles or other drug equipment. In preventing hepatitis D you should prevent the infection with hepatitis B so adopt the measures mentioned in the prevention of hepatitis B.
If you want to prevent hepatitis E you should wash your hands, when eating fruits and vegetables wash them well and eat only freshly cooked food, drink only bottled water or boiled water especially in places where the sanitation of water supply is questionable.
In the prevention of alcoholic hepatitis one should: stop or reduce the consumption of alcohol. In the prevention of toxic or drug induced hepatitis one should: wear protective equipment, watch out of the lethal contents of the chemicals, do not expose directly to chemicals. The most appropriated treatment and therapy will be suggested by your doctor regarding the type and form of hepatitis that you developed, so do not try to treat it by yourself with home care remedies, because it is not enough.
You should ask your doctor the following questions: If your hepatitis is severe? Which type of hepatitis you have? What test are performed to put the diagnosis? How affected is the liver? The damage of the liver is irreversible or reversible? What treatment is recommended in your type of hepatitis? What risks suppose the treatment? If the family should take any precautions?
By: Groshan Fabiola
Symptoms of hepatitis vary depending on the cause of the illness and how much the liver has been damaged. Hepatitis may also result in pain or tenderness under the lower right rib edge due to the organ swelling. Symptoms of acute viral hepatitis may begin suddenly or develop gradually with flu like symptoms. Nearly all patients experience some fatigue and often have mild fever, loss of appetite, weight loss, and dehydration. Symptoms of progressive chronic viral hepatitis may be very subtle and no more than a mild persistence of acute symptoms for six or more months, fatigue is among the most common symptom affecting the quality of life of patients with chronic hepatitis C.
In the prevention of hepatitis B you should practice safe sex, inform your partner of your health state, do not share razors, brushes, needles, manicure tools that may have been contaminated. In the prevention of hepatitis C you are advised to practice safe sex, don't share razors or manicure tools or needles, limit alcohol intake, never share IV drug needles or other drug equipment. In preventing hepatitis D you should prevent the infection with hepatitis B so adopt the measures mentioned in the prevention of hepatitis B.
If you want to prevent hepatitis E you should wash your hands, when eating fruits and vegetables wash them well and eat only freshly cooked food, drink only bottled water or boiled water especially in places where the sanitation of water supply is questionable.
In the prevention of alcoholic hepatitis one should: stop or reduce the consumption of alcohol. In the prevention of toxic or drug induced hepatitis one should: wear protective equipment, watch out of the lethal contents of the chemicals, do not expose directly to chemicals. The most appropriated treatment and therapy will be suggested by your doctor regarding the type and form of hepatitis that you developed, so do not try to treat it by yourself with home care remedies, because it is not enough.
You should ask your doctor the following questions: If your hepatitis is severe? Which type of hepatitis you have? What test are performed to put the diagnosis? How affected is the liver? The damage of the liver is irreversible or reversible? What treatment is recommended in your type of hepatitis? What risks suppose the treatment? If the family should take any precautions?
By: Groshan Fabiola
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