What Is Hepatitis C?

Hepatitis C causes about 350,000 deaths each year worldwide — yet many people don't even know they have the infectious disease.

What is Hepatitis?

Hepatitis is an inflammation of the liver, and hepatitis C is liver inflammation caused by the hepatitis C virus (HCV).Other types of viral hepatitis include hepatitis A, B, D, and E.

Hepatitis A and E are generally acquired from contaminated food and drink, while B, C, and D are transmitted via bodily fluids. Vaccines are available to prevent hepatitis A and B, but no vaccines exist for hepatitis C and E.

You can only acquire hepatitis D if you already have hepatitis B, so the hepatitis B vaccine can protect you from both B and D infections.

Causes and Risks of Hepatitis C

HCV causes hepatitis C infections. There are six major strains of HCV, or HCV genotypes, and more than 50 subtypes of hepatitis C, according to the World Health Organization (WHO).

These genotypes respond differently to treatments, and it's possible to be infected with more than one HCV genotype at the same time.

Hepatitis C is a contagious disease that is transmitted when the blood of an infected person enters the body of someone who isn't infected.

Today, the most common ways this occurs is through: 

• The sharing of needles and syringes for intravenous drug use 

• Accidental needle injuries in healthcare settings 

• During birth if your mother has hepatitis C 

Though less common, it's also possible to acquire a hepatitis C infection by having unprotected sex with someone who has the virus, or using personal care items — including razors and toothbrushes — that have come in contact with blood infected with HCV.

Some factors that increase your risk of hepatitis C: 

• Working in the healthcare setting or another field in which you have regular contact with blood 

• Having HIV

• Receiving a tattoo or piercing with non-sterile instruments 

• Undergoing kidney dialysis for many years 

Though viruses are the most common causes of hepatitis, there are also numerous types of non-viral hepatitis, including: 

• Alcoholic hepatitis caused by prolonged alcohol abuse 

• Autoimmune hepatitis, in which the immune system attacks healthy liver cells 

• Drug-induced hepatitis from various medications, including acetaminophen, non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs), anabolic steroids, birth control pills, and tetracycline antibiotics 

• Hepatitis resulting from nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD), a condition that develops when large amounts of fat accumulates in the liver of someone who drinks little to no alcohol and who typically is obese 

Prevalence of Hepatitis C

Hepatitis C comes in two forms: Acute and Chronic.

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), approximately 15 to 25 percent of people who become infected with hepatitis C only develop an acute infection, which spontaneously clears from the body within six months. The other 75 to 85 percent of people go on to become hepatitis C carriers and develop a chronic infection, which can last a lifetime and lead to hepatitis C-related liver complications, including chronic liver disease, cirrhosis (irreversible scarring of the liver), and liver cancer.

Men are less likely than women to spontaneously clear an acute infection from their blood, and more likely to develop liver complications from the infection, according to a 2006 article in the journal Gut.

On a global scale, two to three percent of the world's population is living with hepatitis C, and about 350,000 people die each year from complications related to the disease, according to 2012 report in the journal Clinical Infectious Diseases.

Any Symptoms of Hepatitis C?

About 70 to 80 percent of people who become infected with acute hepatitis C do not show any symptoms at first, notes the CDC.

Those who do, however, may have: 

• Jaundice 

• Fatigue 

• Fever 

• Dark urine 

• Gastrointestinal issues 

People with chronic hepatitis C, on the other hand, don't normally show any symptoms until the liver becomes damaged.

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