It is an inflammation of the liver (hepatic) as a result of infection caused by the hepatitis C virus (HCV).
Contagion is due to contact with blood infected by the virus. Factors that promote transmission: unprotected sexual intercourse, delivery with an infected mother due to contact with the mother's blood, needle sharing when taking drugs, incorrect sterilization of medical materials, poorly sterilized needles in tattoo parlors and transfusion of untested blood.
Many infected patients do not show any symptoms in the initial stage. Usually there are symptoms common to other viral infections and other more specific to viral hepatitis: pain in the right upper abdominal quadrant, abdominal swelling due to fluid build-up, pale stools, cloudy urine, fatigue, fever, itching, yellow tinge on the skin (jaundice), loss of appetite, nausea and vomiting, etc. Up to 80% of cases derive into a chronic infection and up to 30% in hepatic cirrhosis. It is more likely if there is also an infection due to the Hepatitis B virus, HIV or suffers from alcoholic addiction.
Symptoms in the chronic phase tend to include: yellow tinge of skin and membranes, increased abdominal perimeter due to fluid known as ascites, reduced level of consciousness or encephalopathy and digestive bleeding due to varices in the esophagus.
Diagnosis is reached through a detailed medical history, full physical examination and laboratory tests. Imaging tests shall be performed to complete the diagnosis.
Medical treatment is based on antivirals with proven efficacy.
- Sanjiv Chopra. Epidemiology and transmission of hepatitis C virus infection. UpToDate. Sep 07, 2016.
- Reinhard Lorenz, Stefan Endres. Clinical manifestations, diagnosis, and treatment of acute hepatitis C in adults. UpToDate. Oct 13, 2015.
- Recommendations for Testing, Managing, and Treating Hepatitis C. Joint panel from the American Association of the Study of Liver Diseases and the Infectious Diseases Society of America. January 2014 http://www.hcvguidelines.org/ (Accessed on January 01, 2015).
- European Association for the Study of the Liver. Recommendations on treatment of hepatitis C. 2014 http://files.easl.eu/easl-recommendations-on-treatment-of-hepatitis-C.pdf (Accessed on April 14, 2014).
- Miller MH, Agarwal K, Austin A, et al. Review article: 2014 UK consensus guidelines - hepatitis C management and direct-acting anti-viral therapy. Aliment Pharmacol Ther 2014; 39:1363.
- Dienstag JL, Issekbacher KJ. Hepatitis vírica aguda. Harrison. Manual de Medicina. 16º edición. 805-810.
