Introduction:
Some basic questions and answers hepatitis C below.
Do you have questions such as:
1) What Is Viral Hepatitis C?
2) How Does It Manifest Itself?
3) Why Is It Dangerous?
4) How Is The Virus Transmitted & Can Hepatitis Be Cured?
5) What Doctors Treat You & Where To Start Treatment?
To get questions and answers on Hepatitis C, do follow the guide right away.
Hepatitis C is an inflammatory liver disease caused by the HCV virus (Hepatitis C Virus).
Chronic Viral Hepatitis C proceeds without symptoms.
It makes the disease especially dangerous.
The HCV virus uses healthy liver cells to replicate.
In the end, it causes the cells to break down and fibrous tissue replaces them.
In the absence of treatment for Hepatitis C, cirrhosis and liver cancer can increase.
It is the likelihood of developing the most adverse consequences at large.
That is why it is so important to identify the disease on time to start the therapy.
Modern antiviral drugs can cure hepatitis C completely.
Prevalence Of Viral Hepatitis C
In developed countries, the incidence of viral Hepatitis C is about 2% of the population.
These figures grow every year.
It associates with the spread of drug addiction and intravenous drug administration.
How Do People Get Infected With Hepatitis C Virus?
The virus transmits through the blood.
You can get infected with the virus when applying tattoos, piercing, and visiting a nail salon.
It can be medical manipulations with blood, including blood transfusions and operations.
To add, it goes the same with the administration of blood products and at a dentist’s appointment.
Infection is also possible with the general use of toothbrushes and shaving devices.
Nail accessories are also on the list.
Sexual transmission is rare, as is maternal transmission during pregnancy.
Breastfeeding is not prohibited for hepatitis C.
But one should take care if blood appears on the nipples.
It is impossible to get infected with the hepatitis C virus during domestic contact.
The virus is not transmitted by airborne droplets, handshakes, hugs, and shared dishes.
Patients with viral hepatitis C do not need isolation and do not pose a danger to others.
Hepatitis C Virus Tests
To determine the hepatitis C virus in the blood, you must pass an Anti-HCV antibody test.
It can show whether there has ever been contacting with the virus.
Anti-HCV – Negative – No Contact.
Anti-HCV – Positive – Contact Was.
The presence of antibodies does not mean the presence of a virus in the blood.
And, if the Anti-HCV result is positive, PCR analysis of HCV-RNA gets performed.
It is according to the results which we determine whether the hepatitis C virus is present in the blood.
What Is The Peculiarity Of The Hepatitis C Virus?
After the virus enters the human body, it enters the liver with the blood flow.
It infects liver cells and multiples there.
The hepatitis C virus characterizes by genetic variability and the ability to mutate.
That is why the virus often manages to “trick” the immune system.
It leads to the development of chronic viral hepatitis C.
Hepatitis C is one of the main causes leading to liver transplantation.
This is why it is better to note to delay treatment.
How Does Hepatitis C Occur?
There are two forms of viral hepatitis C.
1) Acute
2) Chronic
The acute form is most often asymptomatic.
It gets diagnosed only when markers of acute hepatitis C – Anti-HCV-IgM-are detected.
The detection should be in the blood.
It then persists in the blood for no more than 6 months after infection with the virus.
After acute viral hepatitis C, there are three possible scenarios:
1) Approximately 20% of patients make a full recovery;
2) 20% of patients develop inactive chronic viral hepatitis C.
It is with the absence of laboratory markers of the inflammatory process in the liver.
3) The remaining 60% have chronic hepatitis with clinical and laboratory manifestations. It is of liver damage.
It is with liver dysfunction.
The disease progresses over the years.
In patients with active hepatitis, the risk of developing cirrhosis reaches 20%.
It is within 20 years, and of which, 5% develop liver cancer.
When Do The Signs & Symptoms Of Hepatitis C Appear?
Symptoms may not appear at all until the disease progresses to cirrhosis.
Some patients have non-specific symptoms that are also characteristics of other diseases.
They are chronic fatigue, weakness, and fatigue.
It is, for example, a disease of the skin, kidneys, and joints.
How Long Does It Take After Infection For Laboratory Markers Of Viral Hepatitis C To Show Up In Tests?
Antibodies to the hepatitis C virus appear in three months.
RNA of the virus in the blood (PCR analysis) is in 1-2 weeks.
It is from the moment of infection.
Can Hepatitis C Virus Be Cured?
It can.
This is a curable disease.
The probability of recovery depends on the correctness of the treatment plan.
It can reach 99%.
The result depends not only on the qualifications and experience of the doctor.
It is also on the patient and their willingness to perform appointments.
How To Start Treatment?
From the survey.
A standard examination provides complete information.
It is about the virus, its genotype, and viral load, as well as a detailed picture of the liver condition.
For this purpose, biochemical blood tests got performed.
The establishment of the structural and functional state of liver cells.
This includes ultrasound and assessment of the degree of fibrosis.
Also for the appointment of therapy.
Since the instruments for antiviral drugs prohibit their appointment for many concomitant pathologies.
What Does Treat Hepatitis C?
For the treatment of viral hepatitis, you should consult a hepatologist.
The doctor must have experience in the treatment of viral hepatitis C.
The treatment is often accompanied by side effects from drugs.
It is despite the existence of international standards of therapy.
And, it does not always give one hundred percent results.
That is why the process of therapy requires competent decisions of the doctor.
So, his experience and qualifications are important.
When Should I Start Treatment?
Start it as early as possible.
The patient’s circumstances also have to take note.
The conditions are such as the rate of development of the disease and its general condition, take note of it too!
One of the main factors is the degree of liver tissue damage (fibrosis).
It gets evaluated by specialists on a scale from 0 to 4.
Grade 4 corresponds to cirrhosis.
Can I Not Treat Viral Hepatitis C?
Most often, the disease proceeds with symptoms.
But the risk of activation of the process is high.
It is also for the transition to cirrhosis.
This happens with an increase in liver tests in the blood.
They are ALT & AST.
That’s why a doctor should check up on a person with the hepatitis C virus.
Combination therapy is with interferon and ribavirin.
It is the international standard for the treatment of viral hepatitis C.
The dosage of medications and the duration of treatment depend on many factors.
A doctor can recommend depending on the patient’s condition.
How Does Hepatitis Affect The Liver?
Hepatitis can cause liver dysfunction, cirrhosis, and cancer of this organ.
How Does Ground Coffee Affect Liver Function? And Tell Me A Diet In The Presence Of Hepatitis C, Can Fasting Help The Liver?
Coffee in small amounts protects liver cells.
But the dose of caffeine should not exceed 300 mg per day.
Fasting the liver will not help (as it rarely helps anything at all).
Eat with hepatitis should be fractional and in small portions.
It excludes fatty, fried, and spicy food.
Or even better, choose a diet with your doctor.
/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_image/image/59499143/GettyImages_565954723.0.jpg)
Can A Person With Hepatitis C Drink Alcohol?
Since these diseases are liver diseases, alcohol worsens the liver condition.
It is in hepatitis B and C.
After all, if alcohol has a detrimental effect on a healthy liver, then what can we say about the patient.
Regular drinkers are often afraid of the possibility of “drinking to hepatitis”.
How Does This Happen If Known Hepatitis A, B, & C Are Viral In Nature?
A person who consumes alcohol in any amount takes first of all ethyl alcohol.
It is an active substance in all alcoholic beverages.
In the body, alcohol gets oxidized and converted to acetaldehyde.
Then it enters the liver cells, making their membranes more permeable.
And, the enzymes that should be inside the liver cell leave it.
This is immediately evident from a blood test.
The level of liver enzymes in the blood increases.
As a result, the normal functioning of liver cells gets disrupted.
And, fact accumulates inside them.
The liver of a drinker becomes identical to that of an obese person.
Fatty hepatitis, or hepatosis, is an inflammation of liver cells and their obesity.
It prevents the liver from performing its functions.
“There is still a lot to do at this stage,” the expert says.
Complete abstinence from alcohol will stop the development of the disease.
Is Hepatitis Curable?
One can prevent hepatitis infection by providing safe food and water.
You can do it by using vaccines and checking blood donations.
Add – providing sterile injection equipment and infection control is also important.
But prevention and awareness-raising efforts alone are not enough.
One can get treatment for hepatitis B and C infections.
But most people do not have access to treatment due to a lack of screening and clinical services.
And, high prices for some hepatitis medications are also a reason.
What Infections Should A Woman Be Vaccinated Against Before Planning A Pregnancy?
3-6 months before conception, you need to get the following vaccinations:
From Rubella:
This is one of the most dangerous diseases during pregnancy.
In 25%, it leads to malformations and deformities of the fetus, affecting the heart.
It can also affect the visual and hearing organs.
In 95% of cases, Rubella becomes a reason for termination of pregnancy.
It can also cause miscarriage or stillbirth.
To establish the presence of acquired immunity to rubella, one needs antibodies.
They are IgG and IgM antibodies.
This will help.
But if they are not present, a vaccination requires.
It should carry out at least 3 months before conception.
From The Flu:
If conception gets planned for the autumn-winter period, the risk becomes high.
It is of contracting SARS and other viral diseases.
They are the most dangerous for the fetus in the first 3 months after conception.
It makes sense to get a flu shot 3 months before conception.
In exceptional cases, one can do it in the 2nd and 3rd trimesters.
From Hepatitis B & C:
The severity of viral hepatitis B gets expressed in severe liver damage.
It is to the pregnant woman herself.
It also is the possibility of transmission of the virus to the newborn during childbirth.
In which, 95% of the disease becomes chronic.
This vaccination will take you for at least 6 months.
It carries out in 3 stages.
From Diphtheria And Tetanus:
Most citizens get vaccinated against these diseases in childhood.
Revaccinations for adults gets performed every 10 years.
It is after the last revaccination.
During pregnancy, infection with diphtheria can lead to spontaneous abortion.
It goes the same with premature birth too.
With tetanus, the nervous and other systems of the child get affected.
The mortality rate of newborns is almost 100%.
From Measles And Mumps:
A pregnant woman who gets measles risks losing her child.
It is a result of spontaneous abortion.
The fetus is susceptible to various developmental disorders of the brain.
It is also for the nervous system.
One can carry vaccination out twice.
One should also postpone pregnancy for at least 3 months after the last vaccination.
From Chickenpox:
For a pregnant woman, chickenpox infection can be very dangerous.
Many adults have a difficult time with this disease.
Women who have had chickenpox may have children with congenital chickenpox syndrome.
It is in the first months of pregnancy.
This causes malformations of the limbs, brain, and eye lesions.
More informative links below
5 Hepatitis C Facts You Should Know