Hepatitis A is a viral infection that can cause liver inflammation and is a disease that can sometimes show no symptoms at all. It doesn’t give rise to any fatal condition in the liver, but it is surely one of the diseases that need medical attention. It is rare to see a person affected by this disease twice as the human body develops immunity against the virus HAV, which causes it the first time itself. Let us learn in detail about Hepatitis A and the virus HAV. Here we will look at some fast facts on HAV and the Symptoms, Causes, Risk Factors, Diagnosis, Treatment, and Prevention for Hepatitis A.
In most cases, HAV doesn’t show any symptoms in the initial stage, and it is only after the infection has taken some 15 days to 50 days that the symptoms start to appear after the flu. The symptoms of HAV are:
The symptoms can be negligible for the first few months and only show persistence after being infected for at least six months to 9 months. Fatal liver diseases are rare but can occur due to Hepatitis A when the virus HAV lived in the body for a long period.
HAV gets into the exterior world through feces and stool during the excretion process from an infected person. Any individual who consumes food or water from a place with high chances of contamination can get easily infected.
The virus HAV tends to survive outside the human body for a month, and sometimes it can survive for an even longer period of time. One can find it in the soil, or freshwater or sewerage, or even seawater.
The HAV can also be transmitted from an infected person to a healthy person via personal contact. It is highly likely to catch HAV from an infected member of the same household or your sex partner, for instance.
The factors that increase the chances of getting infected by HAV include:
Diagnosis of Hepatitis A is not a long procedure, and Gastro Doctors can detect HAV infection in a body through a blood examination. After the blood test, the HAV’s immensity is usually considered, and a treatment is prescribed to the infected person.
When it comes to the Hepatitis A treatment in Delhi, it is important to note that there is no specific way that Hepatitis A is to be treated. Supportive therapies are used to improvise the levels of comfort and reduce the risk of further complications as HAV may lead to severe dehydration, exertion, and exhaustion.
The supportive therapies used as Hepatitis A treatment in Delhi include:
In some crucial cases of nausea or vomiting, a person may be given immediate emergency treatment, and intravenous fluids may be used.
When it comes to the prevention of Hepatitis A, it is to be noted that the virus that infects the body is transmitted through contaminated food and water. It is advised to maintain proper hygiene and use preventive measures if somebody in the household is already infected. One should completely avoid sexual and personal contact with an infected person.
Hepatitis B can cause severe scarring in the liver and even lead to complications like liver failure or cancer development in the liver. It is an infection in the liver which can become fatal if left untreated. It is a disease that is communicable and can spread from one person to another. It is caused by a virus which is Hepatitis B virus, and is preventable by a vaccine. We will have an in-depth look at Hepatitis B and try to explore more about this contagious infection of the liver, which is a viral disease. We shall check out a few fast facts about the virus that causes hepatitis B and then look at the symptoms, causes, risk factors, diagnosis, and treatment of Hepatitis B in Delhi.
Some of the fast facts about the Hepatitis B Virus are:
Hepatitis B has variable symptoms, and sometimes, especially in the case of children, it is not even visible. There can be abdominal pain or a persistent yellowishness of the eyes, or dark urination. One can find chronic symptoms in some cases, including failure of the liver, development of cancer cells, or scarring in the liver.
Some of the less prominent symptoms are:
The main cause behind Hepatitis B is the spread of HBV, which infects the body. This virus is generally transmitted via bodily fluids and blood. The following can be the causes behind the infection of the body with the HBV:
As Hepatitis B can be transmitted from an HBV-infected person to another via bodily fluids, it is important to understand the risk factors involved. The virus can be transmitted during an exchange of bodily fluids, through a puncture in the skin, and even by using a shared needle.
The infection by an HBV virus can be transmitted, and Hepatitis B may occur when:
Using personal protection is advised to the health workers, and they should follow proper disposal of sharps. Unsafe medical practices can also lead to Hepatitis B.
Liver Specialists in Delhi can detect HBV infection via a blood examination, and a blood test can even help distinguish the HBV into an acute or a chronic one.
Some people can have a higher risk of infection by HBV, and they can go for a screening which is available for :
Newborns are vaccinated to reduce the chances of Hepatitis B. If the mother is infected. They must receive the HBIG (Hepatitis B Immune Globulin within the first 24 hours of the birth.
The condition of Hepatitis B sometimes needs medical attention when there is a chronic case; otherwise, it can get away on its own. Below is the list of different kinds of treatments of Hepatitis B in Delhi at different levels:
In Hepatitis B, self-care is all about eating good and quality food and avoiding the intake of any food or beverage that may harm the liver, which includes alcohol.
A doctor often prescribes the use of an antiviral drug in the case of Hepatitis B, and it helps minimize the ability of the virus to replicate and multiply.
Hepatitis C is a viral and contagious infection caused by the Hepatitis C Virus or HCV. It leads to the inflammation of the liver and can at times damage the liver beyond repair. It generally starts as an acute infection, but if the virus gets to stay in the body for more than six months, then it may turn into a chronic infection and damage the liver.
The symptoms of HCV are not always present in the acute stage, and it might take a while to understand the condition. There are mainly two types of HCV, and the two types and their symptoms are:
It can take around 4 to 15 weeks to get hold of the symptoms at the first pace as the HCV slowly starts to replicate and grow. The visible and noticeable symptoms can be:
It is caused when the HCV gets a chance to stay in the body for more than six months. It can stay for a whole lifetime, and the symptoms can be very severe like:
Hepatitis C is caused by the transmission of HCV through the blood. The HCV is usually inactive and continues to live that way until it gets into the host body. Only after they find a living cell that acts as a host for them, they start to replicate and multiply; once it starts to replicate and multiply, they spread throughout the body and damage the body.
As they can only be transmitted through the infected person’s blood, the only cause can be infected through an already infected person’s blood.
The risk factors that need to be considered in the case of Hepatitis C are:
HCV often goes unnoticed and untreated, which can be fatal for the time to come. There are very rare cases of the infection by HCV being diagnosed at an early acute stage. It is important to understand that a person’s immunity can only deal with HCV in one-fifth of the cases. Given below are the various diagnostic steps for hepatitis C.
The treatment of hepatitis C in Delhi can be done through antiviral medication and can help eradicate HCV. It also helps in stopping the replication and multiplication of HCV in the bloodstream. As a preventive measure, a person can stop alcohol consumption and be very careful about hygiene, especially when it comes to safe medical practices, using razors and other mediums through which the HCV can transmit through blood easily, like the use of syringes. There may be a requirement of even a liver transplant in the chronic stages, and a healthy donor can help an infected person by donating a part of his liver.
Dr. Piyush Ranjan, a distinguished Gastroenterologist at Sir Ganga Ram Hospital, New Delhi has done his medical schooling from Maulana Azad Medical College New Delhi and subsequent training in Gastroenterology from SGPGI, Lucknow in 2003.
