Hepatitis C in women

Hepatitis C is a chronic biliary disease characterized by the defeat of hepatocytes with a violation of their functions. In some literature, you can find another name for the disease "affectionate killer."

This is due to the fact that for a long time the pathology itself does not manifest itself and is diagnosed only at the stage of cirrhosis of the liver. Hepatitis C in women is several times more common than in men. It is worthwhile to understand why and under what circumstances infection with a deadly virus occurs.

Causes of infection and transmission routes of infection

The source of the disease is a virus carrier or a sick person. There are two ways of transmission of infection: sexual and parenteral. The virus enters the body through damage to the skin, mucous membranes of the oral cavity and genital organs.

These pathways may appear in the following cases:

• skin damage or mucous tools containing a virus in a hair salon, beauty salon( tattoo or manicure), dentistry;
• during the operative intervention with the use of tools that have undergone poor-quality sterilization treatment;
• during transfusion of contaminated donor blood or its components to the recipient;
• reusable use of disposable syringes( found among injecting drug users);
• frequent change of sexual partners without the use of barrier methods of contraception( condoms).

Symptoms of hepatitis C

Once the virus enters the human body, it begins to multiply actively. The maximum incubation period is approximately 160 days. Unfortunately, for the first 50 days from the onset of the disease, there are no specific clinical manifestations. The first signs of hepatitis C in women can be similar to many pathologies and do not cause any concern.

Only a qualified specialist

can confirm the diagnosis. However, when inexplicable fatigue and fatigue occur, daytime dysfunctions( wakefulness at night and drowsiness during the day), discomfort in the right hypochondrium, joint pains of unclear etiology, mood swings, etc.,, it is worth consulting a doctor for advice. Only after almost 2.5-3 months the pathology begins to manifest and the following early symptoms of hepatitis C appear in women in acute stage:

• jaundice of the skin, mucous membranes and sclera of the eyes;
• itching of the skin;
• darkening of urine and clarification of feces;
• slight increase in body temperature( within 37-37.5 degrees);
• general weakness and malaise;
• tenderness in the right hypochondrium and heaviness in the abdomen;
• loss of appetite and weight loss;
• pain and discomfort in all joints.

In addition, there is a chronic form of the disease. The incubation period may last for a longer period. Many people, for decades, may not be aware of the existence of hepatitis C, since there are no characteristic signs of the chronic form of the disease.

Doctors recommend consulting for the following symptoms: persistent fatigue and fatigue over a long period of time, weakening of the body's defenses, sharp mood swings, unreasonable, decreased and loss of appetite, resulting in a decrease in body weight, bloating, diarrheaor constipation, a white and yellow coating on the tongue.

The chronic stage of the disease is very insidious. It is difficult to identify and in the absence of proper treatment appears cirrhosis and liver cancer

Looking at the statistics, you can see that 85% of the sick women suffer from the chronic form of hepatitis C because of the absence of any manifestations. In medicine, cases of self-healing from a dangerous virus were recorded. This was due to strong human immunity. In addition, the risk of further development of a serious disease was excluded.

Diagnosis of the pathology of

In order to identify hepatitis C in women, the following procedures will be prescribed by a specialist:

• a biochemical blood test in which special attention is paid to the content of bilirubin, AST and ALT;
• blood for the determination of anti-HCV( antibodies to viral hepatitis C);
• blood from the vein on PCR-HCV;
• Ultrasound diagnosis of the liver and taking biomaterial for biopsy, with the help of which the severity of the disease will be established.

If there is an emergency, you can perform an express test for hepatitis C at home. To do this, use OraQuick® HCV Rapid Antibody Test. This test allows you to know about the presence of a dangerous virus in biological fluids: saliva and blood. Helps to identify the disease at an early stage of development.

The result of OraQuick® HCV Rapid Antibody Test is ready in 20-30 minutes( photo test)

Methods of treatment

When hepatitis C is not always required medical assistance. In 5% of cases due to strong immunity, an independent cure for a dangerous disease occurs. At the same time, antibodies remain in the human blood, which work when the virus enters the body again and no infection occurs.

Only a doctor can determine the state of health and determine whether the patient needs treatment or not. The definition is also based on the following criteria: the sex and age of the patient, the duration of the disease, the genotype of the virus, the body's ability to develop liver cirrhosis.

Treatment of hepatitis is provided with the use of drugs based on Interferon and Ribavirin. With the use of these agents, a positive result can be observed in 75% of patients. But in our time, non-interferon agents are in great demand. What are the medicines for them?

Interferon-alpha is a modern drug aimed at preventing the formation of new infected cells. The duration of treatment is approximately 3 months, with the need to donate blood every 4 weeks in order to monitor the level of affected cells and the virus in the body. The big plus of the drug used is that it prevents the onset of cirrhosis. This drug is not suitable for people who have HIV.Sophosbuvir is a medicinal product manufactured in the form of tablets. The effect of the drug is directed to the virus itself, in which the virus can not develop and multiply. He has no side effects, is easily tolerated even in old age and restores liver function.

Prevention

Absolutely any disease is much easier to prevent than treat. Prevention of viral hepatitis C is divided into two types: primary and secondary. Primary is to inform the public about the methods of infection and the first symptoms of the disease.

Secondary prevention consists in preventing transmission of the virus by the carrier( the sick person should take all measures not to infect other people) and performing preventive vaccinations to prevent the development of other genotypes.

It is important to avoid any contact with biological materials of

patients. People who have been diagnosed with hepatitis C virus can not perform the following actions: become donors of blood and any biological fluids or organs, use with anyone common objects( manicure accessories, toothbrushes, shavingmachine tools, etc.).

It is forbidden to work in places where there is contact with human body fluids( surgical, gynecological, dental offices, beauty salons and tattoo parlors), have sexual intercourse without barrier means of contraception( condoms), reuse disposable syringes for injections.