Hepatitis C Prevention | What is it?
Your liver is a vital organ that is responsible for processing nutrients, filtering the blood and fight infections. If it becomes inflamed or damaged, can not properly perform their functions. One of the viral diseases that can affect the liver is hepatitis C, a contagious, chronic and common experience about 3.2 million people in the United States. Most even have to know the consequences can be very serious damage to health. And most worrying is that some 17, 000 people are infected each year. Therefore it is very important to learn to prevent it.
You know what is hepatitis? The term generally refers to inflammation of the liver. This inflammation or a virus, or toxins (either from excessive alcohol, certain drugs, industrial solvents, certain plants) or as a result of certain medical conditions (an autoimmune disease, among others). There are a variety of hepatitis caused by different viruses and there are many, but the most common are hepatitis A, hepatitis B and hepatitis C. On this occasion we shall discuss in more detail for hepatitis C.
What is hepatitis C?
As mentioned above, is a contagious disease that affects the liver and is caused by hepatitis C. When infection occurs, several things can happen. One is that the person develops an acute infection, which can vary in intensity or severity from very mild with few or no symptoms, or a more serious condition that may even require hospitalization. When is acute hepatitis C is a short-term illness that manifests itself in the first six months after a person is exposed to the virus. Between 15 to 25% of infected people can shed the virus from the body without treatment. Moreover, between 75 and 85% of people who contract the virus develop a chronic disease, ie for life. When hepatitis C is chronic type remains in the body of the person. Over time, it can cause liver problems (liver) problems: it damages the liver, causing cirrhosis, liver failure or liver cancer. Is the leading cause of liver transplants in the United States.