Minimizing your risk of exposure to substances containing these viruses can also be an important preventive measure. A vaccine for hepatitis A is available and can help prevent the contraction of HAV. The hepatitis A vaccine is a series of two doses and most children begin vaccination at age 12 to 23 months.
This is also available for adults and can also include the hepatitis B vaccine. The CDC recommends hepatitis B vaccinations for all newborns. Doctors typically administer the series of three vaccines over the first 6 months of childhood. The CDC also recommends the vaccine for all healthcare and medical personnel. Vaccination against hepatitis B can also prevent hepatitis D. Hepatitis viruses can transmit from person to person through contact with bodily fluids, water, and foods containing infectious agents.
Minimizing your risk of contact with these substances can help to prevent contracting hepatitis viruses. Practicing effective hygiene is one way to avoid contracting hepatitis A and E. The viruses that cause these conditions can be present in water. The hepatitis B, C, and D viruses can transmit through contact with bodily fluids containing these infectious agents. You can reduce your risk of coming into contact with fluids containing these viruses by:. Hepatitis B and C can carry through sexual intercourse and sexual contact.
Using barrier methods, such as condoms and dental dams, during sexual activity can help decrease the risk of infection. Chronic hepatitis B or C can lead to more severe health problems. Because the virus affects the liver, people with chronic hepatitis B or C are at risk of:.
When your liver stops functioning normally, liver failure can occur. Complications of liver failure include:. People with chronic hepatitis B and C should avoid alcohol as it can accelerate liver disease and failure.
Certain supplements and medications can also affect liver function. If you have chronic hepatitis B or C, check with your doctor before taking any new medications. Hepatitis A is inflammation of the liver caused by the hepatitis A virus.
This highly contagious form of hepatitis can be spread through contaminated…. Alcoholic hepatitis is an inflammatory condition of the liver. Get the facts on possible risk factors, complications, and treatment options.
Coronary artery disease reduces blood flow to your heart. Learn how to recognize coronary artery disease symptoms, how to manage the symptoms, and…. Learn how it's caused and treated, and find tips for preventing it. Hepatitis targets the liver, but its types differ in important ways. Understand how hepatitis B and C differ. HBV: Protect yourself.
Get vaccinated. What is hepatitis B? Is sex the only way I can get infected with hepatitis B? The hepatitis B virus can be spread in the following ways: unprotected vaginal or anal sex living in a household with a person with chronic life-long HBV infection sharing personal care items such as toothbrushes, razors, or nail clippers mother passing the infection to her infant during birth sharing needles or paraphernalia works for illegal drug use tattooing or body piercing with unsterile equipment human bites You do not get hepatitis B from sneezing, coughing, kissing, or holding hands.
What are the symptoms of hepatitis B? Only about half of the people who are infected get symptoms. Symptoms might include: yellowing of skin and whites of eyes dark-colored urine loss of appetite or nausea bloated and tender belly extreme tiredness fever pain in joints How serious is infection with hepatitis B?
Do people fully recover? How do I protect myself from getting infected? Who should get hepatitis B vaccine? The following groups of people should get vaccinated against hepatitis B: Everyone 0—18 years of age Anyone who wants to be protected from this infection Sexually active people who are not in long-term, mutually monogamous relationships Men who have sex with men People seeking evaluation or treatment for a sexually transmitted disease Health care or public safety workers who might be exposed to blood or body fluids Residents and staff of facilities for developmentally disabled people Dialysis and pre-dialysis patients People infected with HIV People in close personal contact that is, household or sexual with someone who has chronic HBV infection Current or recent injection-drug users Travelers to regions of the world where hepatitis B is common Asia, Africa, the Amazon Basin in South America, the Pacific Islands, Eastern Europe, or the Middle East ; People with chronic liver disease Three shots will protect you from hepatitis B.
There are vaccines to prevent hepatitis A and hepatitis B; however, there is no vaccine for hepatitis C. Hepatitis C is a liver infection caused by the hepatitis C virus. Hepatitis C can range from a mild illness lasting a few weeks to a serious, long-term illness. Chronic hepatitis C can be a serious disease resulting in long-term health problems, including liver damage, liver failure, cirrhosis, liver cancer, and even death.
It is the most common reason for liver transplantation in the United States. There were 15, deaths related to hepatitis C virus reported to CDC in , but this is believed to be an underestimate. More than half of people who become infected with hepatitis C virus will develop a chronic infection.
However, less than half of people who are infected with the hepatitis C virus clear it from their bodies without treatment. Experts do not fully understand why this happens for some people. In , a total of 3, cases of acute hepatitis C were reported to CDC.
CDC believes the actual number of acute hepatitis C cases in was probably closer to 50, The hepatitis C virus is usually spread when someone comes into contact with blood from an infected person.
This can happen through:. Today, most people become infected with hepatitis C by sharing needles, syringes, or any other equipment used to prepare and inject drugs. Although uncommon, people can become infected when health-care professionals do not follow the proper steps needed to prevent the spread of bloodborne infections. While uncommon, hepatitis C can spread during sex, though it has been reported more often among men who have sex with men.
Hepatitis C can spread when getting tattoos or body piercings in unlicensed facilities, informal settings, or with non-sterile instruments. People can get infected from sharing glucose monitors, razors, nail clippers, toothbrushes, and other items that may have come into contact with infected blood, even in amounts too small to see. Before widespread screening of the blood supply in , hepatitis C was also spread through blood transfusions and organ transplants. Now, the risk of transmission to recipients of blood or blood products is extremely low.
Hepatitis C is not spread by sharing eating utensils, breastfeeding, hugging, kissing, holding hands, coughing, or sneezing. It is also not spread through food or water. You can be infected again even if you have cleared the virus or were successfully treated and cured. This is why people who currently inject and share needles, syringes, or other drug preparation equipment, along with those who receive maintenance hemodialysis, should be tested for hepatitis C on a regular basis.
Yes, but the risk of transmission from sexual contact is believed to be low. The risk increases for men who have sex with men and for people who have multiple sex partners, have a sexually transmitted disease, engage in rough sex, or are infected with HIV.
Research has not shown that hepatitis C is spread within licensed, commercial tattooing facilities. Unregulated tattooing and piercing occurring in prisons and other informal settings may put a person at risk of infection. Yes, but this does not occur very often. If hepatitis C virus is spread within a household, it is most likely a result of direct, through-the-skin exposure to the blood of an infected household member. People who are coinfected are more likely to get cirrhosis as a result of their chronic hepatitis C infection.
In the remaining cases, it'll stay in the body for many years. Chronic hepatitis C can be treated with very effective antiviral medications, but there's currently no vaccine available. Hepatitis D is caused by the hepatitis D virus. It only affects people who are already infected with hepatitis B, as it needs the hepatitis B virus to be able to survive in the body. Hepatitis D is usually spread through blood-to-blood contact or sexual contact. Long-term infection with hepatitis D and hepatitis B can increase your risk of developing serious problems, such as cirrhosis and liver cancer.
There's no vaccine specifically for hepatitis D, but the hepatitis B vaccine can help protect you from it. Hepatitis E is caused by the hepatitis E virus. The number of cases in Europe has increased in recent years and it's now the most common cause of short-term acute hepatitis in the UK.
The virus has been mainly associated with the consumption of raw or undercooked pork meat or offal, but also with wild boar meat, venison and shellfish. Hepatitis E is generally a mild and short-term infection that does not require any treatment, but it can be serious in some people, such as those who have a weakened immune system. There's no vaccine for hepatitis E. When travelling to parts of the world with poor sanitation, where epidemic hepatitis E may be common, you can reduce your risk by practising good food and water hygiene measures.
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