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Hepatitis C
February 25, 2009 |
Hepatitis C is a viral infection that often silently attacks your liver.
Dr Bradley Trope is a gastroenterologist on the medical staff of Lee Memorial Health
System and says, “Common routes of acquisition would be tattoos, blood transfusions
or drug
use and that event could be extremely distanced. It’s not uncommon for the
time of infection to have been ten, 20, 25 years prior to the patient being seen.”
That’s because typically there aren’t any symptoms. The warning signs are often
nonspecific such as nausea, fatigue, and vague abdominal discomfort.
So then how is Hepatitis C discovered? “Occasionally this is found because of elevated
liver tests. This is often done prior to blood donation. This may be done prior
to requesting life insurance,” says Dr. Trope.
If you think you may have been exposed to Hepatitis C, it’s important to speak about
it with your physician. The liver can become inflamed, interfering with it’s ability
to function.
“The untreated Hepatitis C has the potential to evolve into cirrhosis.
And that’s ultimately the reason to try to clear the virus as an attempt to prevent
the development of cirrhosis,” adds Dr. Trope.
In most cases, doctors will treat Hepatitis C with medications for about a year.
If the treatment clears, it is unlikely to come back. However, only around 55 percent
of patients are truly cleared of the virus.
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