There are many different types of diseases which affect human body to get ill. Hepatitis C is one of them. Hepatitis C is one of liver disease which mainly spread by contact with the infected person’s blood. Hepatitis C has two types, acute and chronic infection. Acute hepatitis C infection takes place within first six months after exposure to the virus, and it could change over to chronic infection. The chronic hepatitis c virus is a long-term illness compared to acute hepatitis c and it remains in the human body. The hepatitis c virus infection could lead to very serious liver problems, which includes cirrhosis or liver cancer (CDC, 2016). Almost 350,000 people die every year in the world from this disease (Wapner, 2014). There are no vaccines for this disease currently, but there are antiviral medicines that cure about 90% of people with hepatitis C infection. (WHO 2016)
Hepatitis C is a blood-borne infection. The risk factors for transmission include sexual intercourse with someone who has hepatitis C virus, IV drug use, chronic hemodialysis, and blood transfusions before 1992.2 (Lee, Conniff, Kraus, & Schrager, 2015). Some people have more chances of having Hepatitis C, which includes current injection users sharing needles which are currently the most general way that spreading Hepatitis C virus in the United States. It also appears in past injection drug users, for those who only used once or injected several years ago. Also, it transmitted by blood or organs that donated from hepatitis C tested positive person before 1992 when blood screening was not available. For those who received a blood products before 1987 for clotting problems, blood dialysis patients who have kidney failure, for those people who have received tattoos or body piercing done with dirty instruments, people who had blood or organ transplant that donated from people who had positive hepatitis C virus, and HIV positive people are great chances of infected by hepatitis C virus. There is no specific age group, gender, and genetic that contributes to having Hepatitis virus C disease, but environment increases the risk to have infected with hepatitis C such as needle sticks injury among healthcare workers and infected mothers give birth to children. Although sexual transmission is extremely rare, for a healthy lifestyle, use of condoms can be considered (CDC, 2016).
The hepatitis C virus has a single-stranded RNA virus, and it is transmitted by blood (Lee, Conniff, Kraus, & Schrager, 2015). Once the virus enters the body, it must connect to the liver cells and infects the cell in order for the virus to reproduce. According to Epidemic.org (n.d.), we do not know the accurate processes of hepatitis C, but it has to follow eight steps to infect the liver cells. “The virus finds and connects itself to a liver cell; the virus enters the cell; the viral RNA release in the cell; the viral RNA begins the making of materials that necessary for viral reproduction; the virus creates a template for the creation of new viral RNA; the viral RNA directs the production of capsomeres; the completed capsomeres assemble around the new viral RNA into new viral particles; the newly formed viruses travel to the inside portion of the plasma membrane and attach to it, creating a bud. Due to this continuous cycle of reproduction results in significant damage to the liver.” After all, the person who infected with HCV generally experiences mild and flu-like symptoms and may include fatigue, joint and muscles pain, and so on.
Hepatitis c virus’s incubation period is around 2 weeks to 6months in the human body. Out of all of the initial infection, about 80% of people do not show any symptoms. For those who got acutely symptomatic may experience with fever, pain in joints, nausea, vomiting, gray colored facial, dark urine, jaundice, abdominal pain, decreased appetite, and tiredness (WHO, 2016). Hepatitis C virus infection is a common indication for liver failure and cirrhosis if left untreated. And it is the most common cause of liver transplant in the United States (Lee, Conniff, Kraus, & Schrager, 2015).
Diagnosis of hepatitis C starts with a physical exam. During the physical exam, the doctor will ask medical history and check liver enzymes to s
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