Hepatitis C in men

One of the most important functions of the liver is the purification of blood from toxins that penetrate from the outside or are metabolic products. When the gland is broken from the intestine, poisonous substances enter the bloodstream that affect the activity of all body systems.

The first sign of liver dysfunction is intoxication( weakness, decreased efficiency, lack of appetite).Hepatitis C in men is the most common viral infection that affects the liver.

How is the infection transmitted

Infected with hepatitis C virus can be parenteral or instrumental, that is, if the pathogen gets on the wound surface of the skin or mucous. Most often, the disease is transmitted through the blood, much less risk of contracting sex, that is, through sperm or vaginal discharge.

Often infected with hepatitis C ask a question, whether it is possible to have healthy children. The virus is not transmitted from father to child directly, the risk of infecting a woman during sexual intercourse exists( occurs in 3-5% of cases), and the likelihood that the mother will give the child an infection is also low.

According to experts in Russia, about 4.7 million people are carriers of viral hepatitis C. Most of them are men, which is due to their antisocial behavior, namely, a large number of sexual partners, the use of injecting drugs( among people who use drugs intravenously, 80% are infectedhepatitis).

In addition, men are less likely to undergo medical examination and drink more alcohol, which leads to a delay in the diagnosis and aggravates the course of the disease. That is why hepatitis C in men is found only when there are already significant degenerative changes in the liver.

Because infection is likely with medical manipulation( blood transfusion, dental treatment, using reusable equipment in contact with blood), piercing, tattooing, acupuncture, and even in a beauty salon, in 20% of cases the source of infection can not be determined.

The strain differs from other hepatitis viruses in that it is in a very low concentration in the blood serum and the response of the organism, manifested as the production of specific antibodies, arises late and it is rather weak. The virus can cause acute and chronic infection. Acute infection in 9 out of 10 infected people occurs without symptoms and in extremely rare cases can endanger life.

Acute current of

In 15-45% of cases, immunity copes with the virus on its own within six months. If this does not happen, the disease becomes chronic, which in 95% of cases is treated with antiviral drugs of direct effect.

When jaundice becomes chronic, jaundice occurs with exacerbation of

. The incubation period lasts from two weeks to six months, most often the first symptoms appear if only after 1.5-2 months after infection. In most cases( 80%), the clinic is not expressed for a long time( even for decades), so a person does not suspect that he is sick, which means he does not receive treatment and promotes the spread of the infection.

There is an opinion that in cases of liver disease, there is a so-called jaundice. Yellowing of the skin and sclera is caused by the ingestion of bilirubin into the bloodstream, which can not be completely disposed of by the inflamed liver. Bile not only gives a yellowish shade of skin, but also provokes itching.

However, almost in 75% of cases, the pathology proceeds without such symptoms, and the main signs of the disease are asthenic and dyspeptic syndrome and an enlargement of the gland in size.

Only a quarter of those infected in the acute phase of the disease have a short-term mild jaundice, and most often it is limited to yellowing of the eye proteins. Due to the fact that the disease has no specific symptoms, the disease turns into a chronic form that can progress to cirrhosis and liver cancer.

In acute hepatitis C, the following symptoms appear:

• increases body temperature( up to 38 ° C);
• lacks appetite;
• possible vomiting and nausea;
• there is pain in the abdomen and joints.

Symptoms of hepatitis C in men often go unnoticed, because they are similar to flu manifestations and are not so intense as to force a doctor to consult. Rarely there are local signs, for example, painful sensations in the right hypochondrium, indigestion.

Since the gland is inflamed, it ceases to cope fully with the excretion of bilirubin, so it is possible to suspect liver pathology by the presence of a symptom such as decolorization of feces and darkening of urine. These signs appear only two days after the manifestation of the disease.

Manifests the disease by the appearance of general symptoms: weakness, apathy, anorexia

Even at the initial examination during palpation of the abdominal organs the doctor can determine the pathology of the liver and prescribe a laboratory study. In all cases, the liver increases, and sometimes the spleen( hepatosplenomegaly).

Since the disease is not very pronounced, but it provokes serious changes in the liver( which can be seen in the photo), it is necessary to carefully monitor the health status and at the first signs of impairment of the gland( darkening of the urine and white feces, jaundice), contact the therapist, infectiologistor hepatologist.

In an acute period of the disease, blood tests often show a reduction in white blood cells and platelets. The study reveals an increased activity of hepatic enzymes, an increase in total direct bilirubin, a decrease in prothrombin and dysproteinemia. On the parameters of liver tests, one can draw conclusions about the severity of the course of the disease and the stage of the disease.

The first signs of hepatitis C in men appear 6-8 weeks after infection, their severity depends on the concentration of the virus in the blood and the state of the immune system. In most cases, men do not consult a doctor, because they do not attach importance to the symptoms that appear, but write off them for congestion and fatigue or for an easy cold.

Severe hepatitis C occurs only in 1% of patients. In this case, such autoimmune disorders as agranulocytosis, peripheral nerve nerves, aplastic anemia are capable of developing. With these complications, a lethal outcome is possible.

Chronic form of

In the overwhelming majority of cases, the virus affects the liver cells slowly and for decades remains unrecognizable, and the symptoms appear only when the gland tissue has already undergone destructive changes. That is why it is often diagnosed with hepatitis C when there are already signs of cirrhosis or hepatocellular liver cancer.

It is believed that in 80% of cases the disease becomes chronic. Ten and even twenty years of infection does not provoke the appearance of any symptoms indicating the presence of the virus. Often chronic hepatitis C with fatigue and decreased cognitive functions, so patients do not seek medical help and, accordingly, do not learn about the disease at an early stage.

Although the general condition of the patient is satisfactory, morphological changes occur in the liver leading to the replacement of healthy tissue with fibroids.

The transition of hepatitis C into a chronic form is manifested by an increased amount of hepatic enzymes in the blood on the background of the patient's satisfactory condition and complete absence of complaints,a slight increase and thickening of the gland.

In patients with chronic hepatitis, patients report increased fatigue, weakness, dyspepsia. When examined, vascular changes( palmar erythema, telangiectasia) are noticeable, the liver is enlarged, the spleen in most cases too.

As liver damage occurs, such signs of pathology as fluid accumulation in the abdominal cavity, swelling of the legs, loss of consciousness, internal bleeding, drowsiness. When the liver functions in the blood, a crobriulin is found that accumulates in the vessels and affects the work of the kidneys, joints and skin( a purple rash appears).

Hepatocytes accumulate fat( steatohepatitis) in approximately 50% of patients with hepatitis C. If complications occur, nausea without vomiting, weakness, pain in the liver region, mild icterus, enlargement of the liver.

Than hepatitis C is dangerous.

. In most cases, hepatitis C in men is detected by chance, for example, during a planned medical examination. If the test determines the presence of antibodies to the virus, then it is necessary to conduct a study that will establish the genotype of the virus( there are 6 of them).

It is from what subspecies of the virus "occupied" the liver and will depend on the tactics of treatment and the prognosis of the disease. It is necessary to determine the extent of the lesion of the gland, that is, whether fibrosis or cirrhosis develops, for which a liver biopsy or non-invasive tests are performed.

In 27% of cases of cirrhosis the cause is chronic hepatitis C. The degeneration of the parenchymal tissue of the liver into the connective tissue occurs in 10-30% of cases for 30 years. Such factors as alcohol abuse, hepatitis B infection, and HIV can speed up the development of cirrhosis.

If a patient with hepatitis C drinks a lot of alcohol-containing beverages, then the probability of developing cirrhosis increases 100 times

Experts say that in 20-30 years after infection with hepatitis C, cirrhosis is detected in 40-45% of the subjects. When cirrhosis occurs dystrophic and necrotic changes in the parenchyma, with the appearance of a deformity of the organ and organ failure develops. With the loss of 80% of the parenchyma, jaundice, encephalopathy, coagulopathy, hypoalbuminemia, hepatoric syndrome appear.

Hepatitis C in men develops faster than in women, which is not associated with physiological or morphological features, but with a lifestyle. Since there are many ways of infection, and specific symptoms that would indicate a patient for the development of pathology, there is no, it is recommended to pay special attention to the prevention of the disease.