Hepatitis

Hepatitis means inflammation of the liver. The commonest causes are viruses (Hepatitis A, B, C, D, E), alcohol, drugs, and fatty liver. Each type behaves differently — some are self-limiting illnesses; others become chronic and can cause cirrhosis and liver cancer over decades. Vaccines and treatments have transformed what can be done.

The five main viral hepatitis types — quick summary

• Hepatitis A — food/water-borne. Acute illness; almost always self-limiting; vaccine available.
• Hepatitis B — blood and body fluids (sex, mother-to-baby, unsterile needles, transfusions). Can become chronic. Vaccine available, effective, part of UIP.
• Hepatitis C — mostly blood-borne (unsterile injections, transfusions, tattoos). Often silent until cirrhosis. Curable with 12-week oral antiviral courses — widely available in India through government programmes at low or no cost.
• Hepatitis D — only in people with hepatitis B.
• Hepatitis E — water-borne; usually self-limiting but can be severe or fatal in pregnancy.

Symptoms (when present)

• Tiredness, loss of appetite, nausea.
• Mild fever.
• Right-upper-abdominal discomfort.
• Yellow eyes/skin, dark urine, pale stools.
• Often silent in chronic hepatitis B and C — which is why testing matters.

Who should be tested

• Every pregnant woman (for Hepatitis B; also HIV and syphilis).
• Anyone with persistent fatigue, abnormal liver tests, unexplained jaundice.
• Household/sexual contacts of someone with hepatitis B or C.
• People who received blood transfusions or dialysis in the past.
• Healthcare workers.
• Tattoo, piercing, or unsterile-injection history.
• People born in areas of higher prevalence.

Prevention

• Hepatitis B vaccine — 3 doses; free for infants under UIP; adults should catch up if missed.
• Hepatitis A vaccine — particularly in children in urban India with less early natural exposure.
• Safe water and food — prevents A and E.
• Safer sex, sterile injections, licensed tattooing, don't share razors or toothbrushes.
• Screen blood donors — standard practice in India now.
• If exposed (needle-stick, sexual contact) — post-exposure prevention may be possible within hours; see a Health Expert urgently.

Treatment

• Acute A / E — supportive care, rest, hydration, no alcohol, avoid unnecessary drugs.
• Chronic B — not always curable, but antivirals control the virus and prevent cirrhosis; lifelong monitoring.
• Hepatitis C — directly acting antiviral tablets for 8-12 weeks cure more than 95%. A huge change from older treatments.
• Monitor for liver cancer — 6-monthly ultrasound in people with cirrhosis or chronic B.