Hepatitis C: Symptoms, Transmission, Causes, Testing, Treatment & More

What is Hepatitis C?

Hepatitis refers to inflammation of the liver. Although a number of factors can cause hepatitis such as heavy alcohol use, drugs and some metabolic disorders, the most common cause is virus infection. The three main forms of viral hepatitis are A, B and C. Similar to other viral types, hepatitis C, or HCV, attacks the liver causing it to become inflamed. If left untreated, it can cause serious long-term damage.

What are the Symptoms of Hepatitis C?

In the initial stage (acute hepatitis C), symptoms may only lead to mild illness or not produce any signs or symptoms at all. If left undetected, it could develop into a serious condition (chronic hepatitis) leading to permanent liver damage.

Acute hepatitis C

It is unusual to diagnose hepatitis C during the acute stage as it produces no symptoms. This is why it is known as the silent epidemic. Symptoms, if any, can take anywhere between 2 weeks and 6 months to develop. They are similar to viral infections and the symptoms include:

• Yellow skin or eyes
• Fever
• Fatigue
• Abdominal pain
• Loss of appetite
• Nausea and vomiting
• Dark-colored urine
• Light-colored stool
• Joint pain

A smaller percentage of people will be able to rid the virus from their bodies without any diagnosis or treatment.

Chronic hepatitis C

If the body is not able to rid itself of the virus, hepatitis C enters into the chronic stage. However, it may still not produce any specific identifiable symptoms until the virus has caused substantial damage to the liver. Symptoms of chronic hepatitis C may include:

• Fever
• Muscle aches
• Nausea
• Vomiting
• Bruising easily
• General weakness and fatigue
• Loss of appetite
• Weight loss
• Dark-colored urine
• Light-colored stool
• Jaundice
• Itchy skin

How is Hepatitis C Diagnosed?

Generally, chronic hepatitis is detected during a routine screening for pregnant women, blood donations or high-risk individuals. In a routine test, blood is screened for hepatitis C antibodies (anti-HVC antibody). If this comes out positive, a polymerase chain reaction (PCR) test may be taken to determine how much of the virus is present in the blood (viral load).

The next stage is to detect the level of liver damage. There are a number of blood tests that can clinically predict the level of damage from scarring (fibrosis). An MRI or ultrasound can determine liver stiffness which also results from scarring. In extreme cases, a liver biopsy may be required.

When to see a doctor for hepatitis C?

People can live for years without developing any symptoms, therefore those in high-risk categories should be screened for hepatitis C.