Did you know that according to the WHO (World Health Organization) 2016 estimates, 7134 persons died from hepatitis A worldwide (accounting for 0.5% of the mortality due to viral hepatitis)? This shows that hepatitis A is a serious disease that needs to be addressed early on to prevent serious complications. Learn everything you should know about Hepatitis A via FAQs. Log on to www.doralhw.org for a consultation.
What is Hepatitis A?
Hepatitis A is an acute (short-term) liver infection caused by the hepatitis A virus (HAV). It is linked to unsanitary environments – like unsafe water or food, poor sanitation, and unprotected oral-anal sex.
What separates it from other forms of viral hepatitis (like hepatitis B and C) is that it is a relatively short-term infection with no major complications. But rarely, it can lead to acute liver failure (fulminant hepatitis), which can be fatal.
Routes of Transmission
The hepatitis A virus is very contagious and spreads commonly through the fecal-oral route. Contact can occur by:
- Consumption of fruits and vegetables washed in infected water
- Eating food infected with the virus
- Drinking infected water
- Having close personal contact with an infected person (like household or sexual contact)
Hepatitis A doesn’t spread from
- Casual contact with an infected person, like hugging, shaking hands, or being sneezed on.
- Breastfeeding doesn’t transmit hepatitis A infection to your baby.
People with chronic liver disease (like hepatitis B and C) & people with HIV infections are at a higher risk of developing severe complications from hepatitis A infection.
Symptoms
Hepatitis A virus has an incubation period of 14 to 28 days (about 2-4 weeks). So, you might develop symptoms 2 to 7 weeks (about 1 and a half months) after you come in contact with it. These symptoms may include:
- Yellowish eyes and skin, called jaundice
- Dark yellow urine
- Fatigue
- Low-grade fever
- Clay-colored stools
- Joint pain
- Nausea, vomiting, loss of appetite, and diarrhea
- pain in the abdomen
Many infected patients show no symptoms, especially young children (less than 6 years old).
Diagnosis
Your doctor will take a detailed history, including any travel abroad (especially to the African or Asian subcontinent), and order a complete exam and blood tests.
Blood test: Your blood would have HAV-specific immunoglobulin M (IgM) antibodies if you are infected with hepatitis A (acute infection). If your blood reports show antibodies other than IgM after Hepatitis A infection, it means you have immunity against the virus (either due to previous infection or through vaccination). They might order additional tests, like reverse transcriptase polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR), to detect the hepatitis A virus RNA in such cases.
Complications
Hepatitis A infections don’t cause any debilitating long-term liver damage. Almost everyone recovers from HAV infections, resulting in lifelong immunity against it.
In exceedingly rare cases, it might cause acute liver failure (in chronic liver diseases and old age), which might need medical attention or a liver transplant in extreme cases.
Treatment
Recovery from HAV infections usually includes rest and nutritional support (healthy diet and fluid replenishment) to help relieve symptoms. The symptoms usually resolve themselves in a few weeks. However, you might be prescribed dietary supplements or vitamins.
Make sure to follow up on your doctor’s appointments to ensure a complete recovery.
Prevention
The only strategy to prevent Hepatitis A infection is to get the Hepatitis A vaccine.
The CDC (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention) recommends the hepatitis A vaccine for:
- All children (1 year or older) who haven’t had the vaccine shot
- Infants (ages 6 to 11 months) and adults traveling internationally
- People in direct contact with an infected person
- Healthcare/Laboratory workers
- People with chronic liver disease (including hepatitis B or hepatitis C)
Get your first hepatitis A vaccine today by booking your appointment here –https://yuz88hfiyh7.typeform.com/Doralintake. This ensures you are protected from this deadly viral infection and able to protect others around you. Make sure you take all the doses of the hepatitis A vaccine. For further queries, call us on + 1-718-367-2555 to get a consultation. If you need help, register your information and make direct contact with our doctors at https://yuz88hfiyh7.typeform.com/Doralintake. Log on to www.doralhw.org. Or visit us at 1797 Pitkin Avenue, Brooklyn, NY 11212.
