The hepatitis C is the most common and a problem epidemiological important by the number of cases that occur by hepatitis viral. It is caused by a virus that is in the liver and in the blood of people infected.
It is a chronic disease and its symptoms can take in pronouncing until 15 or 20 years after the contagion.
The acquired virus come into contact with the blood of any infected person, which can be given in several ways that could happen many years ago, before it was revealed by the disease.
Among the forms of contagion are:
- Having received blood or an organ transplant before.
- Sharing needles for injecting drugs.
- Carried or have been chopped, with contaminated needle with infected blood and poorly sterilized, through:
- Intramuscular Injections received before 1991, the year with shared syringes.
- In healings dental or surgery before that year.
- By blood donation also until that date, because there was no disposables and used glass syringes and sterilization methods insufficient to eliminate the virus.
- Carried accidentally with contaminated needle of infected blood to make certain jobs, as are the worker of health personnel.
- Made a hole in any part of the body or a tattoo with instruments not disposable, used previously in other people and not sterilized.
- Have been kidney dialysis before.
- Have relationships with many couples unprotected intercourse.
- It is also a frequent complication in the sick people who have alterations in the clotting, for example hemophiliacs.
It is a dangerous disease and serious.
- 1 Of every 50 persons the suffers.
- Becomes a chronic infection with very easily.
- There is no vaccine for this type of virus.
- Can cause serious diseases of the liver as the liver cirrhosis.
The sick people often complain of muscle aches and very tired, and when is well advanced, in addition to the cirrhosis also cause encephalopathy.
Now all the blood transfusions are made with great security to prevent this and other problems such as AIDS, but people who were in need of a transfusion before 1991, could be at risk of developing it.
The sick with this type of hepatitis are generally not they learn that have for lack of symptoms or because these are so mild and vague that are attributed to flu.
Most are not cured and should be treated with drugs to prevent the development of the cirrhosis or cancer and the treatment also depends on the stage where it is diagnosed the disease and the type of virus, which is caused by six different genotypes of the most common is the IB.
For this type of hepatitis there is no vaccine, so that if a person has received blood or their derivatives, he recommends taking a blood test to determine the possible presence of antibodies. The test must realize is that of ELISA, the same as that used to detect the AIDS virus, and in case of exit positive, go to a gastroenterologist, infectious, internist or liver is the most recommended for proper treatment.
To prevent it is important to follow the safety standards established for the donation of blood and other body organs and avoid having sex with multiple partners or without protection.
