Approximately 70 percentto 80 percent of people with acute hepatitis Chave no symptoms. Some people, however, can have mild symptoms soon after becoming infected.
Fever, fatigue, and jaundice are all symptoms
Other symptomsinclude loss of appetite, nausea and vomiting, abdominal pain, dark urine, clay-colored bowel movements and joint pain.
Symptoms often appear six weeks after exposure
This period can actually range fromtwo weeks to six months, but the average time is six to seven weeks after exposure. Again, however, most people with hepatitis C never develop symptoms.
Hepatitis C can be spread without symptoms
Even if a person with hepatitis C has no symptoms, they still are able tospread the virus.
You can have hepatits C and not know
Many people with hepatitis Cdo not look or feel sick, and therefore may have no idea that they have the virus. A blood test is required to determine if a person has ever been infected with hepatitis C and a followup test is needed to see if he or she is still infected.
Chronic hepatitis C may cause liver problems
The symptoms of chronic hepatitis C typically involveliver problems, as there may be no symptoms for many years until liver function and enzyme levels are affected.
Long- term effects can be serious
Chronic hepatitis C can result in long-term health issues, such as liver damage, liver failure, liver cancer and even death. It is theleading cause for cirrhosisand liver cancer. Roughly 15,000 people die every year from hepatits C-related diseases.
Allison wrote for HealthCentral as an editor and producer for Allergy, Asthma, Cold & Flu, COPD, Rheumatoid Arthritis, Skin Care, Skin Cancer, and Sleep Disorders.
