Hepatitis A - How You Get it and What it Does to Your Body

Definition of Hepatitis

Hepatitis is inflammation of the liver, which is caused by viruses, medications and toxic agents. Currently, at least five (5) forms of viral hepatitis are recognized which in this article we will learn about Hepatitis A, how it spreads and how to prevent infection.
How hepatitis spreads




Hepatitis A (HAV) is spread primarily by oral contact with feces of an infected person (oral-fecal contact), including contaminated food or water sources, and any sexual contact, especially oral-anal sex.

Hepatitis A easily spreads among young children in kindergartens and day cares as many cannot wash their own hands and are in diapers and since children normally have no symptoms, no one may know that they might be infected.

On rare occasions hepatitis A has been spread through blood transfusion, using blood products or sharing personal tools and equipments specially sharing needles or other injecting equipment which is contaminated with hepatitis A infected blood.

Transmission by blood rarely happens because the virus cannot stay present for long. As it enters the blood onset of infection occurs.

Symptoms of Hepatitis

Since hepatitis A is an acute disease, it produces an initial acute phase with few symptoms. If any symptom is realized, they tend to be similar to flu like symptoms:

- muscle or joint aches
- mild fever
- vomiting
- nausea
- slight abdominal pain
- loss of appetite
- fatigue
- diarrhea

The acute phases and their symptoms are rarely serious or fatal, but occasionally a rapidly progressing form may lead to death.

Gradually the conditions worsen and theses symptoms are experienced:

- jaundice (yellowed skin, mucous membranes and eye-whites)
- light colored stools that may contain pus
- dark urine
- itching
- hives

The types of hepatitis are then distinguished by the course of the hepatitis and the varied outcome after the acute phase.

Prevention of Hepatitis

To prevent hepatitis A, always remember to the following:

Sexual Prevention:

- do not get involved in a sexual intercourse.
- commit to mutual monogamy (having sex with only one uninfected partner).
- Cut up non lubricated latex condoms or use of any moisture barriers, for example household plastic wrap or dams (square piece of latex) can help reduce the risk of transmitting Hepatitis A virus during oral-anal sex.

Non-Sexual Prevention:

- Avoid sharing drug-injection equipment especially drug needles.
- Avoid contaminated water or food sources. Only eat freshly prepared foods. drink commercially bottled or well boiled water, that too in places where water supply and sanitation are healthy and don't eat non-peeled raw vegetables or fruits unless cleaned properly.
- Do practice good personal hygiene, especially washing hands after using the toilet or changing any diapers or sanitary pads.
- To inactivate hepatitis A virus, heat the food at temperatures above 85 degrees Celsius for 1 minute or disinfect the surfaces with a 1:100 dilution of bleach in tap water (1 part bleach for every 100 parts of water).
- It is very important for you to take a 'hepatitis A vaccination' before you travel to areas like Eastern Europe, Mexico, and other developing countries.

To Your Health!

by: James S. Pendergraft

Hepatitis C - Causes, Symptoms and Treatment

Hepatitis C is an infection which is passed on through blood. It even transfers due to partaking of spoons, tainted needles and sieves used to infuse street drugs.
Causes of Hepatitis C:




Passing on of Hepatitis C from the mother to the baby, there is a possibility of the infection been passed on from the mother who suffers from Hepatitis C to be passed on to the newborn, but in this case the chances are very few. Sharing of razors, toothbrushes and scissors: there are chances of hepatitis C being transferred by the sharing of these things and also unsterilized body piercing or tattooing equipment.

In case you have received any blood donated before the September of the year 1991 as the blood which was donated at that time was hepatitis C positive and people have been diagnosed by hepatitis C.

Hepatitis C can also be transmitted through bodily fluids. This is possible in case of sexual intercourse, the risk in this case is perpetual, in case you fear that either of you could be diagnosed by hepatitis C it is advisable to get it verified. There are chances of hepatitis C being positive in case you get punctured accidentally by a needle. Abroad blood transfusions are common, in case the equipment is not well sterilized well; there are chances of hepatitis C being transferred. But hepatitis C is not transmitted by coming in contact with people, like by kissing, sharing of utensils, hugging and from toilet seats.

Symptoms of Hepatitis C:

Commonly people are not affected by the disease initially. There are chances that symptoms like flu, pain in the joints, fatigue, appetite going down and also vomiting sensation may be experienced, all this after about a week of being infected. In about one out of five cases that are diagnosed with hepatitis C, the immune system would resolve the virus from the system in about six months.

However, in some cases of chronic hepatitis C, the virus is active for many years; and even then there are no indications for years together. Although there are no symptoms, the virus can be transmitted by them to others. In a few cases the liver of the sufferer is not affected and he or she is living a normal life. But in chronic cases, there is damage to the liver and the symptoms are, tiredness, loss of weight, liver pain, aching muscles, nausea and jaundice in which the skin and the white part of the eye turns yellow in color.

Treatments of Hepatitis C:

There is no vaccine made till date in order to help you stay against or even recover from hepatitis C. But there are treatments which help in clearing the virus. The treatment for hepatitis C is an amalgamation of two drugs, ribavirin and interferon. In case the treatment doesn't clean up the virus, it at least slows down the damage and inflammation in the liver. The medications which are given for hepatitis C cause a lot of side effects.

by: James S. Pendergraft

The Hepatitis B Virus

Hepatitis B is what we used to originally known as just simply serum hepatitis. Hep B has been recognized as this new name since World War II. The virus is responsible for current epidemics in parts of Asia and Africa. Recognized as endemic in China and various other parts of Asia, the Hepatitis B virus has infected over one third of the world's current population.




Hepatitis B is in the Hepadnavirus family. Meaning that it consists of a proteinaceous core particle that has the viral genome inside of it in the form of double stranded DNA. It also has an outside lipid-based envelope that contains embedded proteins. These envelope proteins on the outside are involved in viral binding and release into susceptible cells. Where as the inner capsid refinds the DNA genome to a cell's nucleus where it transcribes viral mRNAs. Although HIV, the virus that causes AIDS, and Hepatitus are not related they are both viruses that use reverse transcription process. This also include HTLV. Hepatitis B's genome is DNA, and reverse transcription is one of the latter steps of the entire process which results in making new viral particles. HIV on the other hand has an RNA genome and reverse transcription is one of the first steps in replication of the virus.

Hepatitis B is most commonly transmitted through direct exposure to bodily fluids that contain the virus. This is a wide category but in most cases includes:

- Re-using contaminated needles and syringes

- Uncleanly Blood transfusions

- Unprotected sexual contact

- Direct transmission from mother to child during childbirth

The dominant mode of transmission depends largely on the prevalence of the disease in a given area. For example if areas such as North America drug abuse and unprotected sex are the primary mode of infection. Where as in areas such as such as China where http://www.hepatitis-b-spot.com Hepatitis B is very prevalent, the vertical transmission(mother to child) is the most common. A mother who is positive for the Hepatitis B surface virus has a 20% risk of passing the infection to her offspring during birth. That percentage can rise to as high as 90% if the mother is also infected with the hepatitis B e antigen.

The older a person is at the time of infection, the greater the risk that their body will not clear the infection. Hepatitis B infection can lead to a permanent inflammation of the liver, the result of this inflammation leads cirrhosis. These affects largely increase the likelyhood of developing liver cancer.
by: Ryan Fyfe