Hepatitis B

What is it?

Hepatitis B is an infection of the liver caused by a virus. Most infected people get well, but sometimes Hepatitis B can lead to liver cancer and death. In 2001, an estimated 78,000 people in the United States were infected with Hepatitis B.

How do you get it?

The Hepatitis B virus lives in body fluids, such as: blood, semen, vaginal fluid, and saliva. Hepatitis B spreads easily from person to person through these body fluids. You can get it by:

• Having vaginal, anal, or oral sex with someone who has the virus
• Sharing needles – ear-piercing, tattoo, and injection drug needles can all spread the virus
• Being born to a mother who has the virus in her body

Symptoms

Symptoms of Hepatitis B include:

• Yellow skin or eyes
• Feeling very tired
• Fever
• Loss of appetite
• Stomach pain
• Nausea and vomiting
• Swollen glands
• No symptoms
• Joint pain
• Dark urine
• Skin rash
• Weight loss
• Liver pain (upper right side of belly, just below rib cage)

Diagnosis

A simple blood test can tell if you have hepatitis B now or have had it in the past. Some people have no symptoms, so getting tested is important.

Treatment

There is no cure for hepatitis B. HBV vaccination is recommended. This vaccination is given in three shots over a 6-month period and will protect you from infection if exposed to the virus. If you are exposed to hepatitis B and have not been vaccinated, you can get a special shot right away to help you. You will also be vaccinated at that time.

What happens if you don’t get tested?

Some people who get hepatitis B may get well on their own. Others may get well but still have the virus in their bodies. So even though they feel fine, they can pass the virus on to others. Sometimes the virus can damage the liver and lead to liver cancer or death.

Other viral illnesses involving the liver are also sexually transmitted.

Hepatitis C

Spread by blood to blood contact and thus can be spread sexually. 70-85% of people infected with Hepatitis C may develop long-term infection and chronic liver disease. There is no vaccine for Hepatitis C.

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