Hepatitis

HEPATITIS A

HEPATITIS B

HEPATITIS C

How do you get it?

Hep A is passed between people through rimming (anal-oral sex), dirty plates, and glasses. Poor toilet hygiene or outbreaks in the water supply. Most people get Hep A from contaminated water, which can happen anywhere.

You can get Hep B through sexual contact via semen and/or vaginal fluid, blood (syringe, needlesticks or transfusions), or breast milk (mother to child). You can't get it from dirty plates or glasses, or from someone's spit.

Transmission of Hep C is mostly through blood, via syringes, transfusions, or needlesticks, but sexual contact has been reported (case studies of vaginal sex), as has mother-to-child transmission during birth.

What does it do?

The way Hep A works in the body is not well understood. Virtually all people get better on their own. You can only get it once.

Hep B infects liver cells, causing swelling and the tissue to die. Your own immune system response causes some of the symptoms associated with Hep B infection.

Hep C infects your liver, causing swelling and the death of cells and tissue. Hep C works similarly to Hep B, but not much is understood about how Hep C causes harm.

What are the symptoms?

Although virtually all people get better, the symptoms from Hep A can be severe, even deadly: high liver enzymes, high fever, loss of appetite, nausea, vomiting, and tell-tale jaundice. Jaundice is a yellow discoloration of skin and eyes, caused by an increase in liver enzymes. The symptoms usually last 1 to 4 weeks.

Symptoms, if you have any, will show up 10-12 weeks after infection. The symptoms are high liver enzymes, fever, appetite loss, nausea, diarrhoea, vomiting, exhaustion, and jaundice. Most chronic Hep B carriers don't have any symptoms, but they have a good chance of developing cirrhosis of the liver, which can kill you.

The symptoms of Hep C are: high liver enzymes, fever, loss of appetite, nausea, diarrhoea, vomiting, exhaustion, and jaundice. However, many Hep C patients never have symptoms. Chronic Hep C infection is associated with cirrhosis of t he liver, which is scar formation in the tissue, and related to an increased risk of liver cancer.

What are the treatments?

There is no antiviral treatment for Hep A infection. If you have specific symptoms you should treat each one individually.

Alpha-interferon injections are the standard treatment for chronic Hep B. The injections, usually daily or three times a week, are self-administered, and taken for four months. 3TC, Thymosin-Alpha, and famcyclovir look promising, alone and in combination with interferon. 3TC may suppress Hep B replication, but might not get rid of the infection.

Alpha-interferon three times a week for six to twelve months is the standard treatment for Hep C. The combination of ribavirin and interferon has been shown to be more effective than interferon or ribavirin alone. Protease Inhibitors in development for treating Hep C.

How do you avoid getting it?

Be careful about water, fruits, and vegetables when you travel. Drinking bottled water is usually safer. Use barriers for rimming and intercourse. There is a vaccine, which can be given in combination with the vaccine for Hep B.

Use condoms and clean needles. There is a vaccine against Hep B; It's a series of three shots given over six months. It's so easy! Remember, practising safer sex and using clean needles will protect you from more than just Hep B.

There is no vaccine for Hep C yet, so to avoid infection, have safer sex and use clean needles.