Viral Hepatitis A
GENERAL INFORMATION:
What is hepatitis A? Hepatitis (hep-uh-TI-tis) A is an infection (in-FEK-shun) of the liver. It is called hepatitis A because that is the name of the virus (germ) that causes the disease. There is a vaccine (medicine) that can stop you from catching hepatitis A. If you already have hepatitis A, it is too late to get the vaccine. There is no quick cure. You may be sick with hepatitis A for 6 months to a year. You may even have your symptoms go away and then return and go away again before the year has passed. Hepatitis A will finally go away and you will get better.
What causes hepatitis A? People almost always get hepatitis A from fecal (BM) contamination (kun-tah-min-A-shun). There are 3 main ways this can happen:
- Food handlers who have the disease did not wash their hands after having a BM.
- You drank water or ate raw shellfish (clams, oysters) that came from unclean water areas.
- You were in a place with poor sanitary conditions (dirty) where the hepatitis A virus is common. For example, a small place with too many people living in it.
- Day care workers who do not wash their hands after changing a diaper.
- Men who have sex with men.
- The blood of an infected person getting into your blood.
- Users of both injectable and non-injectable street drugs can get it by using dirty or used needles.
What are the signs and symptoms of hepatitis A? You may have no symptoms at all. About half the people with hepatitis A do not have any symptoms. Many children have hepatitis A with no symptoms. The older people are when they get hepatitis A the more likely they are to have symptoms. Following are early signs and symptoms:
- Feeling tired
- Not being hungry
- Headache
- Low fever--usually under 100.4°F (38°C).
- Jaundice (JON-diss). When you have this, your skin and the whites of your eyes turn yellow. You may first find this under your tongue.
- Nausea (feeling sick to your stomach), or vomiting (throwing up).
- Dark-colored urine, and light-colored BM's.
- Pain in your right side near the bottom of your rib cage.
- Itchy skin.
How is hepatitis A treated? You will usually be treated at home. If you vomit a lot, you may need to go to the hospital to get fluids through an IV. Resting and eating healthy food will help you get better. You should drink 8 (soda pop can size) glasses of water each day. If you are nauseated, you should eat a lot of starchy foods--fruits and vegetables, bread and pasta. Avoid protein foods like milk, fish and meat and also fatty foods. Protein and fat make your liver work harder. As your liver heals and you feel better, you can add other kinds of foods to your diet. You should not drink alcohol. Your friends and family may get a shot from their caregiver to keep them from getting hepatitis A.
CARE AGREEMENT:
You have the right to help plan your care. To help with this plan, you must learn about your health condition and how it may be treated. You can then discuss treatment options with your caregivers. Work with them to decide what care may be used to treat you. You always have the right to refuse treatment.
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