Hepatitis C

Hepatitis is a very common disease, and it has five types, which are hepatitis A, hepatitis B, hepatitis C, hepatitis D, and hepatitis E.

Hepatitis C

Hepatitis C is a type of viral hepatitis. In most of the cases, hepatitis C doesn’t cause symptoms, which makes it stay in the body for a long time without the patient’s knowledge, and it also leads to extremely serious complications.

Hepatitis C is fairly common, and it’s been estimated that there are about 60 million patients with it worldwide.

Causes of hepatitis C

The virus of hepatitis C transfers through infected blood, and the infection can be transmitted in these cases:

• Sharing needles while using drugs.
• Nonsterile tattoos and piercing tools.
• Using contaminated things of a patient.
• Transferring blood from a patient.
• In some cases, it could transmit from the pregnant woman to her baby.

Symptoms of hepatitis C

Usually, hepatitis C starts as an acute condition, then it becomes chronic. In acute hepatitis C, there aren’t often any symptoms because the virus can stay up to 6 months without the body’s recognition, and if symptoms do manifest, they appear in only about 20% of patients and might include: tiredness, fever, jaundice, nausea, and muscle pain.

When hepatitis C becomes chronic, and that’s in about 80% of patients, symptoms might also not appear until the liver becomes severely damaged. Symptoms of chronic hepatitis C include the following:

• Easily bleeding and bruising.
• Skin itchiness.
• Unintentional weight loss.
• Edema in the arms and legs.
• Abdominal ascites (fluid buildup in the abdomen).
• Dark-colored urine.
• Jaundice.
• Hepatic encephalopathy, which causes confusion, difficulty remembering and thinking, and slurred speech.

Complications of hepatitis C

• Cirrhosis, due to excessive liver scarring.
• Liver failure.
• Liver cancer.

Diagnosis of hepatitis C

• Blood tests.
• Liver functions tests.
• Imaging tests.
• Liver biopsy.

Treatment of hepatitis C

• In some mild cases, hepatitis C might wear off alone without treatment. However, the patient often needs antivirals.
• If the liver is severely damaged and has stopped functioning properly, the patient might need a liver transplant.

Prevention of hepatitis C

• Avoid drug abuse and sharing needles.
• Make sure that the tools of tattoos and piercings are sterile.
• Don’t share your private things.