Riverview Endoscopy

Hepatitis C

Infectivity

Prognosis

Prevention

Treatment

Infectivity

Hepatitis C is caught:

• by transfer of blood between people including during
  • blood transfusion
  • IV drug use
  • body piercing
  • tattooing

• rarely during sexual contact (unless there is blood involved) - the annual risk may be 1%

• sometimes from mother to child
  • at birth (with a risk from HIV negative mothers of about 3%) or
  • during pregnancy

Prognosis or Outcome

Occasionally it causes an acute hepatitis, but most commonly infection passes unnoticed until blood tests reveal abnormal liver tests. Some people go on to develop serious liver disease including cirrhosis (scarring) or rarely even liver cancer. The exact risk for progression to these diseases in not clear. It varies depending on age at infection, length of infection and alcohol use. The best way for an individual patient to have their risk of progressive liver disease assessed is probably to have a liver biopsy. If there is already a lot of scarring and irritation then it may be more likely that cirrhosis will develop.

Most people, however, will probably have no long term serious problems and most likely will not even be aware of having the infection unless they have a blood test.

Prevention

To prevent the spread of infection people with Hepatitis C should not:

• share
  • razors
  • toothbrushes
  • needles
  • kits

• donate blood

Treatment

The drugs used to treat Hepatitis C are Interferon and Ribavirin. These are expensive and often have side effects. Drug treatment for some patients is available through government funding, drug trials, and private prescription. Not all patients want or are suitable for treatment with these drugs. Apparent cure of Hepatitis C is seen in between 20 and 80% of patients who have interferon and ribavirin for 6 to 12 months. A cure cannot be guaranteed in any individual case, but is more likely in those without genotype 1 or 4, women, and those with a shorter length of infection.

Other potential therapies for Hepatitis C include Pegylated Interferons, Herbal remedies, and Amantadine. At the present time evidence for benefit from these treatments is limited to Pegylated Interferons, which is available for some patients in selected centres usually in the context of clinical trials. Many studies seem not to have found a benefit from Amantadine, and studies continue into various herbal preparations. These are commonly used, but without good evidence of benefit, by people with Hepatitis C. Some herbs can cause liver disease.

Your doctor can provide you with more information about Hepatitis C and its treatment.

Presented by Dr Lindsay C MollisonRiverview Endoscopy Home Page

Disclaimer

Created 28 July 1997

Updated 14 November 2001

Comments Welcomed.