Hepatitis The Liver Disease Term paper
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Hepatitis, the Liver DiseaseWhat is Hepatitis?Hepatitis in simple words, is an inflammation of the liver. Different things cause the different types of hepatitis, but they all produce inflammation of the liver. Viral hepatitis refers to several common contagious diseases caused by viruses that attack the liver. The most important types of viral hepatitis are hepatitis A, hepatitis B, and hepatitis C. Newly discovered forms of viral hepatitis also include hepatitis D, E, and G. Toxic agents, that is drugs or chemicals, can cause non-viral forms of hepatitis, alcohol, or auto-immune processes. Another form of hepatitis is toxic hepatitis. Viruses or liver damage due to toxic substances can cause toxic hepatitis. Toxic hepatitis is a deterioration of the liver cells caused by chemicals, alcohol, drugs, and industrial compounds. Alcohol abuse is a common cause of toxic liver damage. Study of hepatitis is still under way, but as far as we are concerned we will only take a close look at three types of Hepatitis in this report: hepatitis A, hepatitis B, hepatitis C.HEPATITIS AHepatitis A is a liver disease caused by the hepatitis A virus. Hepatitis A can affect anyone. In the United States, hepatitis A can occur in situations ranging from isolated cases of disease to widespread epidemics. Good personal hygiene and proper sanitation can help prevent hepatitis A. Vaccines are also available for long-term prevention of hepatitis A virus infection in persons of two years of age and older. Immune globulin is available for short-term prevention of hepatitis A virus infection in all ages.Persons with hepatitis A virus infection may not have any signs or symptoms of the disease. Older persons are more likely to have symptoms than children are. If symptoms are present, they usually occur abruptly and may include fever, tiredness, and loss of appetite, nausea, abdominal discomfort, dark urine, and jaundice, yellowing of the skin and eyes. Symptoms usually last less than 2 months; a few persons are ill for as long as 6 months. The average incubation period for hepatitis A is 28 days (range: 15-50 days). Hepatitis A virus is spread from person to person by putting something in the mouth that has been contaminated with the stool of a person with hepatitis A. This type of transmission is called "fecal-oral." For this reason, the virus is more easily spread in areas where there are poor sanitary conditions or where good personal hygiene is not observed. Most infections result from contact with a household member or sex partner who has hepatitis A. Casual contact, as in the usual office, factory, or school setting, does not spread the virus.Hepatitis a is diagnosed through a blood test, using IgM anti-HAV, immune globulin that is hostile to the Hepatitis A virus. Children with hepatitis A usually have no symptoms. Adults may become quite ill suddenly, experiencing jaundice, fatigue, nausea, vomiting, abdominal pain, dark urine/light stools, and fever. The incubation period averages 30 days, however, an infected individual can transmit the virus to others as early as two weeks before symptoms appear and one week after. Symptoms will disappear over a six-month period until complete recovery occurs. Nevertheless complications may occur if no actions are taken, these include fulminant hepatitis or relapse of the disease.In the battle against hepatitis and in an effort to prevent its spread two products are available. A virus infection: immune globulin and hepatitis A vaccine.+ Immune globulin is a preparation of antibodies that can be given before exposure for short-term protection against hepatitis A and for persons who have already been exposed to hepatitis A virus. Immune globulin must be given within 2 weeks after exposure to hepatitis A virus for maximum protection.+ Hepatitis A vaccine has been licensed in the United States for use in people' 2 years of age and older. The vaccine is recommended (before exposure to hepatitis A virus) for persons who are more likely to get hepatitis A virus infection or are more likely to get seriously ill if they do get hepatitis A. The vaccines currently licensed in the United States are HAVRIX manufactured by SmithKline Beecham Biologicals, and VAQTA, which is manufactured by Merck & Co., Inc.Often people wonder if such type of vaccines and prevention techniques are safe and their side effects. Well so far hepatitis A vaccine has had an excellent safety profile. No serious adverse events have been attributed definitively to hepatitis A vaccine. Soreness at the injection site is the most frequently reported side effect. Immune globulin is also determined very safe. No instance of transmission of HIV or other viruses has been observed with the use of immune globulin administered by the intra-muscular route. Immune globulin can be administered during pregnancy and breast-feeding. It should be noted though that protection against hepatitis A only begins four weeks after the first dose of hepatitis A vaccine.HEPATITIS BHepatitis B is also a serious disease caused by a virus that attacks the liver. The virus, which is called hepatitis B virus (HBV), can cause lifelong infection, cirrhosis (scarring) of the liver, liver cancer, liver failure, and death. Hepatitis B vaccine is available for all age groups to prevent hepatitis B virus infection. Hepatitis B can affect anyone. Each year in the United States, more than 200,000 people of all ages get hepatitis B and close to 5,000 die of sickness caused by HBV. If you have had other forms of hepatitis, you can still get hepatitis B. One out of 20 people in the United States will get hepatitis B some time during their lives. Your risk is higher if you:+ Have sex with someone infected with HBV + Have sex with more than one partner + Live in the same house with someone who has lifelong HBV infection + Have a job that involves contact with human blood + Shoot drugs + Are a patient or work in a home for the developmentally disabled + Have hemophilia + Travel to areas where hepatitis B is common Your risk is also higher if your parents were born in Southeast Asia, Africa, the Amazon Basin in South America, the Pacific Islands, and the Middle East. You also get hepatitis B by direct contact with the blood or body fluids of an infected person; for example, you can become infected by having sex or sharing needles with an infected person. Even babies get the disease, a baby can get hepatitis B from an infected mother during childbirth. Hepatitis B is not spread through food or water or by casual contact. If you have the hepatitis virus, HBV, in your blood you can give hepatitis B to your baby. Babies who get HBV at birth may have the virus for the rest of their lives, can spread the disease and can get cirrhosis of the liver or liver cancer.Sometimes, people who are infected with HBV never recover fully from the infection; they carry the virus and can infect others for the rest of their lives. In the United States, about one million people carry HBV. You may have hepatitis B, and be spreading the disease and not know it; sometimes a person with HBV infection has no symptoms at all. The only way to know if you are currently infected with HBV or if you are a carrier of the virus is to have a specific blood test for HBV. The test will not show positive during the incubation period (45 to 60 days, average 120 days).If you have symptoms + Your eyes or skin may turn yellow + You may lose your appetite + You may have nausea. vomiting, fever, stomach or joint pain + You may feel extremely tired and not be able to work for weeks or months There is no cure for hepatitis B; this is why prevention is so important. Hepatitis B vaccine is the best protection against HBV. Three doses are needed for complete protection. All pregnant women should be tested for HBV early in their pregnancy. If the blood test is positive,...
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