Hepatitis B

Overview

Hepatitis B is the inflammation of the liver, caused by the hepatitis B virus or HBV infection. If the inflammation in the liver is not treated or reversed, it can lead to chronic liver diseases, which are fatal. Short-term hepatitis B is known as acute hepatitis, and long-term hepatitis B is known as chronic hepatitis B. There is no vaccine available in medical science to prevent hepatitis B and treatment for chronic hepatitis B is quite expensive to be afforded by the majority of average population.

Types

The general term used to describe an infection or inflammation of the liver is called hepatitis. Besides hepatitis B, the other forms of hepatitis are hepatitis A and hepatitis C. Hepatitis B and C may be asymptomatic for a very long time and can cause severe liver damage due to long-term infection whereas hepatitis A is an acute symptomatic infection and can be completely cured, if properly treated on time.

Symptoms

Most of the people infected with the hepatitis B virus have no symptoms. Symptoms present are similar to a flu bug such as liver pain, loss of appetite, nausea, itching over the entire body, jaundice or yellowing of skin, vomiting, dark colored urine and pale stools. The virus may remain asymptomatic even for years causing gradual damage to the liver, which eventually results in fatal disorders such as liver cirrhosis and liver cancer.

Causes/Risk Factors

Hepatitis B is caused by an exposure to the hepatitis B virus. Acute hepatitis B results shortly after the exposure and chronic hepatitis B is an infection that is long term and is very difficult to cure in later stages. The hepatitis B virus is a blood borne virus, transmitted from one person to another through blood contact. Semen and saliva are capable of transmitting the virus because they also contain small amounts of our blood. People who are at risk of contracting hepatitis B include people having multiple sex partners, those having sex with infected individuals, addicts sharing needles to inject drugs, health care workers and patients undergoing medical procedures with infected or not properly sterilized equipments.

Tests/Diagnosis

Hepatitis B is mostly diagnosed using a blood test or a test on the tissue sample from the liver. In some cases, physicians also prescribe a blood test to confirm the presence of the hepatitis C antibody, which indicates the contact with the virus. These tests will reveal the cause and the inflammation at the time of the test.

Treatment

Acute hepatitis B typically remedies itself over time and usually treatment is not required unless severe symptoms are present. In case of chronic hepatitis B infection, no herbs, supplements or other alternative therapy has been found to be effective so far. The antiviral medications in controlling HBV replication and promoting liver healing in chronic hepatitis B is also found to be ineffective. Drinking a lot of fluids to prevent dehydration, avoiding alcohols or drugs and medicines that may harm the liver, and eating healthy food may improve the condition.