HBV can cause infection and inflammation of the liver. A person can have HBV and transmit the virus to others without knowing that they have it. Some people experience no symptoms. Some only have the initial infection, which then resolves. For others, the condition becomes chronic. In chronic cases, the virus continues to attack the liver over time without detection, resulting in irreversible liver damage.
However, accounting for people who do not report that they have the infection, the number of acute HBV infections may have been closer to 22, Many HBV infections occur during infancy or childhood. This is because a mother can pass HBV to her child during childbirth.
However, doctors rarely diagnose HBV in childhood, as it causes few obvious symptoms. Symptoms of a new HBV infection may not be apparent in children under 5 years of age or in adults with a suppressed immune system. Acute symptoms appear around 60— days after exposure to the virus, and they can last from several weeks to 6 months. A person with a chronic HBV infection may have ongoing episodes of abdominal pain, persistent fatigue , and aching joints. HBV is transmissible when blood, semen, or another bodily fluid from a person with the virus enters the body of an individual who does not have it.
Health workers may be at risk through unsafe medical practices, such as reusing medical equipment, not using personal protection, or incorrectly disposing of sharps.
The virus can survive outside the body for at least 7 days. During this time, it can still cause infection if it enters the body of a person who has not received vaccination against it. Antiviral medication can treat chronic infections. If chronic HBV starts causing permanent liver damage, undergoing a liver transplant can help improve long term survival.
However, receiving an effective vaccine and taking antiviral medications means that fewer people may end up needing a liver transplant as a result of chronic HBV. There is no specific treatment, cure, or medication for an acute HBV infection. Supportive care will depend on the symptoms. Healthcare workers give the prophylaxis after the exposure and before an acute infection develops.
This protocol will not cure an infection that has already developed. However, it decreases the rate of acute infection. This is not a cure for chronic HBV. However, it can stop the virus from replicating and prevent its progression into advanced liver disease.
Some people, usually young children, may not have any symptoms. If you know you've been exposed to hepatitis B, contact your doctor immediately. A preventive treatment may reduce your risk of infection if you receive the treatment within 24 hours of exposure to the virus. There is a problem with information submitted for this request. Subscribe for free and receive your in-depth guide to digestive health, plus the latest on health innovations and news.
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The virus is passed from person to person through blood, semen or other body fluids. It does not spread by sneezing or coughing.
The younger you are when you get hepatitis B — particularly newborns or children younger than 5 — the higher your risk of the infection becoming chronic. Chronic infection may go undetected for decades until a person becomes seriously ill from liver disease. Hepatitis B spreads through contact with blood, semen or other body fluids from an infected person. Your risk of hepatitis B infection increases if you:.
Having a chronic HBV infection can lead to serious complications, such as:. The hepatitis B vaccine is typically given as three or four injections over six months.
If the hepatitis B vaccine series is interrupted, the next dose should be given as soon as possible. The first dose s does not need to be repeated. Anyone who has had a serious allergic reaction to a prior dose of hepatitis B vaccine, any part of the vaccine, or yeast should not get the hepatitis B vaccine.
Most healthy people do not need a booster dose, but a blood test can be performed to check your immunity and decide if a booster dose of vaccine is necessary.
Yes, there is a combination vaccine approved for adults that protects people from both hepatitis A and hepatitis B. The combined hepatitis A and B vaccine is usually given as three separate doses over a 6-month period.
Getting two different vaccines at the same time is not harmful. Talk to your health-care provider or local health department about getting vaccinated. Some clinics offer free or low-cost hepatitis B vaccines. Most children younger than 5 and people with serious health problems like having compromised immune systems have no symptoms. Up to half of all older children, adolescents, and adults experience symptoms of acute hepatitis B. If symptoms occur, they begin an average of 90 days or 3 months after exposure to the virus, but they can appear any time between 8 weeks and 5 months after exposure.
They usually last several weeks, but some people can feel sick for as long as 6 months. Many people with hepatitis B have no symptoms, but they can still spread the virus to others. Most people with chronic hepatitis B do not have any symptoms, do not feel ill, and remain symptom free for decades. When and if symptoms do appear, they are similar to the symptoms of acute infection , but can be a sign of advanced liver disease.
Some people still do not have symptoms even after their liver becomes diseased, although certain blood tests for liver function might show some abnormalities. Chronic hepatitis B can develop into a serious disease resulting in long-term health problems, including liver damage, liver failure, liver cancer, and even death.
There were 1, deaths related to hepatitis B virus reported to CDC in , but this is an underestimate. Talk to your health-care provider if you have risk factors for or think you might have hepatitis B. Since many people with hepatitis B do not have symptoms, blood tests are used to diagnose the infection. Several different hepatitis B tests are available.
Depending on the test, they can determine whether you. Certain tests can even determine how likely it is that someone who is infected with hepatitis B will transmit it to others. Ask your health-care provider to explain what tests were ordered, when you can expect to get the results, and what those results mean. If test results show that you are infected with the hepatitis B virus, you should consult a health-care provider that is experienced in caring for people with hepatitis B.
This can be an internist or family medicine practitioner, or it may be someone who specializes in treating people with infectious, digestive, or liver diseases. There is no medication available to treat acute hepatitis B. For people with mild symptoms, health-care providers usually recommend rest, adequate nutrition, and fluids. Those with more severe symptoms may need to be hospitalized. Several medications have been approved to treat people who have chronic hepatitis B, and new drugs are in development.
However, not every person with chronic hepatitis B needs medication, and the drugs may cause side effects in some patients. People who start hepatitis B treatment may need to take medication indefinitely because these medications do not lead to a cure.
People with chronic hepatitis B should be under the care of a health-care provider that is knowledgeable about this illness like an internist or provider that specializes in treating people with infectious, digestive, or liver diseases and is able to regularly monitor their liver function. People recently diagnosed with hepatitis B should. When a pregnant woman comes in for prenatal care, she is given a series of routine blood tests, including one that checks for hepatitis B virus infection.
Almost all cases of hepatitis B can be prevented in babies born to infected mothers, but these newborns must receive the necessary shots at the recommended times. The combination of hepatitis B immune globulin known as HBIG and hepatitis B vaccine can be given to infants born to infected mothers within 12 hours of birth to protect them from infection.
Nearly all newborns who become infected with the hepatitis B virus develop lifelong hepatitis B. This can eventually lead to serious health problems, including liver damage, liver cancer, and even death. Hepatitis B vaccination is recommended for all babies to protect them from this serious but preventable disease. Skip directly to site content Skip directly to page options Skip directly to A-Z link. Viral Hepatitis. Section Navigation.
Facebook Twitter LinkedIn Syndicate. Hepatitis B Questions and Answers for the Public. Minus Related Pages. Index of Questions Hepatitis B Overview. What is hepatitis? What is the difference between hepatitis A, hepatitis B, and hepatitis C? What is hepatitis B?
What is acute short-term hepatitis B? What is chronic long-term hepatitis B? Who is most likely to get chronic long-term hepatitis B? How common is hepatitis B in the United States?
How common is hepatitis B around the world? Hepatitis B Transmission. How is hepatitis B spread? Can a person spread the hepatitis B virus and not know it?
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