Hepatitis is a disease characterized by inflammation of the liver. "Hepatitis" is a general term that refers to any inflammation of the liver.
Many illnesses and conditions that cause inflammation of the liver. In order to answer the question of whether or not hepatitis is contagious, these illnesses will be broken into two categories; infectious and noninfectious hepatitis.
Most people with hepatitis C don't have any symptoms when they acquire the hepatitis C virus infection, however, about 1/4th of those infected will have symptoms like
Infectious causes of hepatitis usually are, but not always, contagious. For example, hepatitis caused by viruses usually is contagious, although many types of hepatitis are transferred mainly from person to person by blood-to-blood transfer, for example, individual sharing needles, acupuncture, sexual contact, and organ transplantation.
Some infectious parasites (such as Plasmodium spp, Schistosoma spp) cause hepatitis in individuals, but are not contagious person to person.
Most noninfectious causes of hepatitis are not contagious. Hepatitis caused by alcohol poisoning, medications, or toxins or poisons are not transmitted from person to person.
Therefore, the answer to the question "Is hepatitis contagious?" depends upon the type of hepatitis.
In general, the incubation period from time of initial viral infection to development of symptoms ranges widely from about two weeks to six months.
Symptoms of hepatitis vary somewhat depending on the type of hepatitis. Most types of infectious hepatitis that are contagious may have slowly developing symptoms, for example:
Symptoms of hepatitis that develop from noncontagious causes (such as alcoholic hepatitis) may have very similar symptoms described above. Noncontagious hepatitis also may cause increased abdominal size and fluid in the abdomen. The time to develop symptoms may take months to years, but may develop quickly (days) in some toxin-induced hepatitis. A health-care professional can order tests to help determine the underlying cause of a person's hepatitis symptoms.
Serious or severe symptoms of hepatitis (for all types) may include:
Treatments for contagious hepatitis types vary according to the underlying cause and type of hepatitis. Most individuals are contagious about one to two weeks before symptoms appear. Depending upon the type of hepatitis, they can remain contagious for an extended length of time. For example, people with hepatitis A are contagious for at least two weeks after the onset of symptoms, but for hepatitis C and other types of hepatitis, individuals may not be cured of hepatitis and are contagious unless specific treatments occur.
In general, it takes about six months for the liver to recover from "cured" hepatitis A in most individuals. With other hepatitis types, patients may not be cured (or even know they have the disease) for many years.
With noncontagious hepatitis, again the "cure" is dependent upon treatment of the underlying cause. If the underlying cause is "cured," the liver function may or may not improve.
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Fortunately, for some types of hepatitis (for example, hepatitis A), there are preventative treatments. Consequently, if a person suspects that they may have been recently exposed to any type of infectious hepatitis, they should contact their health-care professional quickly to prevent liver damage.
If a person has the following symptoms for days, they should seek medical care urgently.
If a person known to have infectious hepatitis develops severe nausea and vomiting with abdominal pain and/or mental status changes, they should be evaluated in an Emergency Department.
Symptoms include yellowing of the skin (jaundice), itching, and fatigue.
The prognosis is good for some people with cirrhosis of the liver, and the survival can be up to 12 years; however the life expectancy is about 6 months to 2 years for people with severe cirrhosis with major complications.
Hepatitis A and hepatitis B are the two most commnon viruses that infect the liver. Hepatitis A and Hepatitis B can be prevented and treated with immunizations (vaccinations) such as Havrix, Vaqta, Twinrix, Comvax, Pediarix, and hepatitis b immune globulin (HBIG).
Hepatitis is most often viral, due to infection with one of the hepatitis viruses (A, B, C, D, E, F (not confirmed), and G) or another virus (such as those that cause infectious mononucleosis, cytomegalovirus disease). The main nonviral causes of hepatitis are alcohol and drugs. Many patients infected with hepatitis A, B, and C have few or no symptoms of illness. For those who do develop symptoms of viral hepatitis, the most common are flu-like symptoms including: loss of appetite, nausea, vomiting, fever, weakness, tiredness, and aching in the abdomen. Treatment of viral hepatitis is dependent on the type of hepatitis.
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