Hepatitis C Symptoms - How Serious Is It?

Do you regularly feel mildly nauseated and lethargic? These flu like feeling could actually be hepatitis C symptoms. This disease often goes undiagnosed for decades and can cause serious damage to the liver that can lead to liver inflammation and acute liver failure. Much of the public does not have the facts about hepatitis C, so carriers are at risk of further transmitting the disease. In this article, we'll explain how the hepatitis C virus is transmitted and how it can affect the body.

Hepatitis C is a viral infection of the liver that can cause liver inflammation. Infections of hepatitis C occur only if the virus is able to enter the blood stream and reach the liver. About half of all people who develop hepatitis C never fully recover and can carry the virus for the rest of their lives. Although the disease damages the liver, 80% of infected people do not experience symptoms. Of those who do, symptoms may not appear for decades. Even then, the symptoms are infrequent and mild. Unfortunately, by the time symptoms appear, the abnormal liver disease can be quite serious. A minority of people have symptoms during the early acute phase of the infection. These symptoms typically develop 5-12 weeks after exposure to HCV. Some people describe the symptoms as being flu-like and may last a few weeks or months.

During the acute phase, the disease is mild and many people do not have hepatitis C symptoms. Only 25% of persons will appear jaundiced during this phase. In chronic hepatitis, symptoms can come and go, lasting for several weeks or months at a time. HCV may persist for many years without any symptoms although it may be destroying liver cells at a slow rate. The reason for the absence of symptoms is that the liver has a large reserve of cells and so can function normally even when much of it has been destroyed. Other symptoms of hepatitis C can include discomfort on your right side just below the rib cage, fatigue, nausea and vomiting, loss of appetite and weight loss, muscle and joint aches, itchy skin, poor sleep, depression and a feeling of disorientation, troubles with short-term memory, concentration and staying focused on tasks.

Not all people infected with HCV require or respond to treatment. Treatment is usually considered for people who have had elevated liver function tests for at least three months and also have liver inflammation or cirrhosis confirmed by a liver biopsy. People who have little or no liver damage as confirmed by a liver biopsy may not develop severe liver damage. They may choose not to have treatment right away, and instead opt to have doctors monitor their condition with regular blood tests and a liver biopsy every three to five years. When symptoms do appear, doctors recommend that patients get plenty of rest, drink plenty of fluids to prevent dehydration, abstain from alcohol, avoid medicines and substances that can cause harm to the liver, such as Tylenol and other preparations that contain acetaminophen, and avoid prolonged, vigorous exercise until symptoms start to improve.

If you regularly experience hepatitis C symptoms but have not been diagnosed, then it is important that you be tested right away. Early diagnosis can minimize and even reverse some of the damage that may have occurred in an abnormal liver. The patient will also want to discuss vaccination against hepatitis viruses A and B. If a person with HCV becomes infected with either of these other viruses, then the outcome could be quite severe. It is possible to lead a healthy life with hepatitis C but you must be willing to make the appropriate lifestyle changes.

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