All about hepatitis C
The liver is an organ with multiple functions: in addition to food processing, it manufactures active elements in the good coagulation of blood, it stores energy in the form of sugar, it makes harmless some poisons such as alcohol or drugs and it finally allows other organs like the kidneys, the brain ... to work well. When hepatitis C strikes our liver, here are the symptoms, the risks and the existing treatments.
Symptoms
The incubation period of the hepatitis C virus is slow and it can remain silent. After 2 to 3 months after infection with the virus, the person with hepatitis C may be in a state of great fatigue, noted digestive problems, experience liver pain or itching in the area and trigger a jaundice. It is good to know that the intensity of the symptoms does not predict the intensity of the hepatitis. If hepatitis C lasts 6 months after the infection of the virus, it is defined as chronic.
The diagnosis
The diagnosis of the doctor happens first during a palpation of the liver. If he shows signs of hepatitis, the doctor directs his patient in a second time to analyzes that determine whether the hepatitis is viral or not. A blood test will reveal if transaminase and bilirubin levels are of concern (the high level is not proportional to the intensity of the hepatitis) but it will also look for traces of specific anti-HCV antibodies. Hepatitis C. A biopsy, ie tissue analysis on a liver sample, can determine hepatitis C activity, liver condition and help guide the physician to the proper treatment.
Treatments
The treatment of hepatitis C involves the immediate discontinuation of certain drugs and alcohol. Much rest is needed to overcome the state of intense fatigue. If hepatitis C is chronic and in a state of progress judged by the doctor, interferons combined with ribavirin (an antiviral) are prescribed. This is called a dual therapy. This treatment has the disadvantage of triggering symptoms resembling those of the flu: fever, stiffness, headaches the day after the injection and pain, taste disorders, partial loss of hair, dryness of the skin. Nevertheless, after stopping treatment, these side effects cease in the majority of cases. On the prevention side, it is important to know that there is no vaccine against hepatitis C.
The risks to hepatitis C carriers depend on how long the virus has lasted before it can be detected. As hepatitis C can be a disease Silent, many serious patients wait several years before consulting. The risks of untreated hepatitis C are cirrhosis and cancer.
Modes of contamination
Contamination of the hepatitis C virus is by blood. To say that the contamination is sexual is false: during sexual intercourse, the hepatitis C virus can be transmitted but it requires that both people have lesions that make their blood comes into contact with each other. A woman's rules can of course contain the virus, and anyone with the virus must of course protect their sexual partner (s) with a condom. If a pregnant woman is a carrier of the hepatitis C virus, the baby is at risk of contamination during childbirth.
Our advice
The entourage of people with hepatitis C virus must take precautions to avoid any exchange of blood, even a few drops: avoid borrow the toothbrush, razor, hair removal equipment, nail clippers, ... sick people. And, of course, syringes! For anyone exposed to the virus and at risk of infection, it is important to get tested early.
