Understand Hepatitis – How to Safeguard yourself from the Deadly Viral Infection

Hepatitis is the inflammation of the lever and may occur in different types. It is assuming alarming proportions in recent times mainly due to lifestyle changes and unrestricted habits of human being.

Meaning

Hepatitis is a viral infection that causes the liver to swell and does not allow it to function properly. The liver is one of the most important parts of the human body as it purifies blood and also helps as an anti clotting agent. However when the liver is infected with the virus the liver swells up and in the process refuses to do the function to which it specializes. These functions are purifying the blood flowing through it by breaking down harmful elements. Later these broken down elements are attached to other elements and are thrown out of the body system through urine or stool. The most common form of hepatitis is Hepatitis A, Hepatitis B and Hepatitis C. The other forms of Hepatitis are Hepatitis D, Hepatitis E and Hepatitis G. The latter forms are yet to be fully known and a great deal of research is being initiated into in depth study of these viral attacks.

Causes

Non toxic Hepatitis can be caused by agents like drugs or chemicals through food and water, alcohol or by auto immune processes. The form of Hepatitis is toxic Hepatitis and these can be caused by deterioration of lever cells. These again may have been through alcohol, drugs, industrial wastes and fumes. When Hepatitis is seen to be uncontrolled or showing no signs of decreasing then it is called a Chronic Hepatitis. A great deal of hepatitis can be tied down to man’s casual look and over indulgence in lifestyles and indifference to sanitary conditions at home and work place. The other causes are through blood transfusion, sexual intercourse with people having the disease already, using razors, tattooing, piercing and using the same toothbrush helps in passing the virus through blood attached in them.

Symptoms

Hepatitis virus may lie hidden for a very long or short period of time. In case of a blood transfusion on contact with blood of a person having the virus, the actual symptom may or may not surface until late in life. Even the real cause as to when it had been contracted remains a mystery to the patient. For mild Hepatitis there will be yellowing of skin or jaundice. In other cases it results in fatigue, illness, liver function impairment and the visible inflammation of the liver. Sometimes, there are no symptoms at all on an affected person.

Diagnosis

Hepatitis is usually diagnosed by physicians or surgeons and they are mostly found by a deeper study into the illness, stress or discomfort a patient might be experiencing. Although clinical tests do reveal the nature of the disease by studying blood samples obtained from the patients, they still remain at chronic stage as earlier detection may not have been possible. Once revealed the doctor can advise medication. In chronic cases of Hepatitis C it may lead to cirrhosis or liver cancer.

Treatment

Hepatitis of all types is not chronic nor are they fatal. Hepatitis B is perhaps the most dangerous of all the known types of viral diseases as they are primarily infected through blood. The sexually transmitted virus or HIV belongs to this type. As such there is neither proper treatment nor any vaccine available for these types. In case of Hepatitis A it is rather mild one and there is not much necessity for treatment as the virus disappears over time. In case of Hepatitis C it can assume chronic proportion and can lead to cirrhosis or liver cancer and hence has to be treated accordingly in clinics and hospitals. Of late several measures and research has gone through the study of Hepatitis and one can hope for an appropriate vaccine to make its appearance in the future.