Symptoms and treatment of hepatitis C, genotypes of the hepatitis C virus. Medications from hepatitis C

Until recently, the hepatitis virus was considered the only virus of the genus Hepacivirus. But it turned out that horses, dogs, rodents and bats are also susceptible to this disease. Let's try to understand how dangerous hepatitis C is for a person, how to detect and treat it, because timely diagnosis of the disease greatly simplifies the therapy. In addition, young children are affected by the disease, and the sooner it is detected, the greater the chance of a favorable outcome.

What is the hepatitis C virus?

When a person is diagnosed with this disease, he immediately begins to torment a lot of questions about hepatitis C: what is it (photos of manifestations of the disease), which doctor to seek help and so on. Hepatitis virus or jaundice is a particle consisting of a genetic material (RNA) in a core surrounded by an icosahedral protective coat of protein and enclosed in a lipid (or fat) shell of cellular origin.

Hepatitis C is one of several viruses that cause severe inflammation of the liver of a diffuse nature. Up to 85% of people who have had an acute form of the disease remain chronically infected for the rest of their lives. Infection usually occurs through the blood (intravenous injections of unsterile needles, scratches, wounds). The risk of contracting sexually with this virus is considered low, but still takes place.

The causes of hepatitis in adults

Hepatitis C is a disease caused by a virus that affects the liver. The functional duties of the liver include removing harmful chemicals from the body, improving digestion, treating vitamins and nutrients from food, as well as participating in blood thickening processes with cuts and wounds. Hepatitis C in women poses a great danger to babies, since a newborn can be infected from a sick mother during childbirth. That is why it is important for a woman to monitor her health when she is planning a pregnancy.

The virus of jaundice in an adult can be spread in the following cases:

1. When using non-sterile instruments for the administration of intravenous or intramuscular infections (including narcotic).
2. When applying tattoos, piercing, performing acupuncture procedures with non-sterile needles.
3. During unprotected sex with an infected partner, if at this time there is contact through the blood (ulcers, cuts, wounds on the genitals or during menstruation). This method is attributed to unusual methods of infection.
4. In the procedure of blood transfusion.
5. During treatment in dental clinics.

When sneezing, coughing, eating together, exchanging cutlery or other casual tactile contact, hepatitis is not transmitted.

The causes of hepatitis in children

Symptoms and treatment of hepatitis C in children differ somewhat from the signs of the disease in adults. Children's hepatitis spreads in two ways: from mother to fetus (the vertical route of infection) and by direct contact with the blood of an infected person (parenteral route of infection). The virus can be transmitted from an infected mother to a newborn during labor, the incidence of such cases is about 4-5%. If this situation arises, the woman is offered to do a caesarean section, which slightly reduces the risk of transmission of the hepatitis virus to the newborn. Infection of children in the second way usually occurs with various medical interventions, dental treatment, the introduction of drugs through non-sterile instruments, hemodialysis, blood transfusion and other medical manipulations.

Adolescents, as well as adults, have a greater chance of contracting hepatitis while taking drugs. In addition, the risk of infection in adolescents increases with violation of the rules of skin hygiene when applying tattoos, piercing and other. When shaving with general hygiene items through cuts and abrasions on skin integuments, viruses can also enter the body.

Symptoms of hepatitis in adults

Often, many people who are infected with hepatitis C do not have symptoms that are characteristic of the disease. Symptoms of chronic infection do not manifest until the liver does not form scars (develops cirrhosis). In this case the disease is usually accompanied by general weakness, increased fatigue and has nonspecific symptoms even in the absence of cirrhosis.

Symptoms of the disease, as a rule, manifest much later than infection, since the incubation period of hepatitis is from 15 to 150 days. An infected person without symptoms of the disease poses a threat to others, as he acts as a carrier of the virus and can transmit it to other people in the above ways. The main symptoms of the disease include the following:

- loss of appetite;

- malaise, weakness;

- nausea, attacks of vomiting;

- diarrhea;

- sudden sudden weight loss for no apparent reason;

- yellowing of the skin, sclera of the eyeballs (that's why the people call the disease jaundice);

- a change in the color of urine (to dark brown) and feces (whitish faeces).

Symptoms of hepatitis in children

On average, the incubation period of childhood hepatitis can last from 15 days to 6 months. Symptoms of jaundice in children occur in less than 50% of cases and are expressed, mainly, by yellowing of the skin and eye proteins. The icteric period usually lasts up to 3 weeks. Since hepatitis is characterized by liver inflammation, the child has a general intoxication of the body, which is accompanied by nausea, vomiting, diarrhea. The acute form of the disease begins slowly, the symptoms grow gradually, with the development of dyspeptic disorders and asthenovegetative syndrome. Symptoms of jaundice in children can be accompanied by an increase in body temperature, a headache. The feces decolour, urine, on the contrary, acquires a dark, brownish hue.

The revealed symptoms and treatment of hepatitis C are closely interrelated, since with late diagnosis or lack of proper treatment in 10-20% of all cases of acute jaundice becomes chronic. Chronic jaundice, as a rule, is asymptomatic and is usually detected with an accidental examination of the child, when time is lost and the disease remains with him for life. These children have increased fatigue, asthenia, extrahepatic symptoms (telangiectasia, capillaritis).

Diagnostics

Due to the fact that the acute form of hepatitis C usually is asymptomatic, early diagnosis of the disease is very important. With the transition to a chronic form, the chances of detecting infection are reduced, the disease remains undiagnosed and serious complications such as cirrhosis or liver cancer may develop.

Detection of the virus in the body occurs by determining the level of antibodies in the blood, and then confirmed by additional tests to determine the viral RNA. The amount of RNA in the blood (viral load) does not correlate with the severity of the disease, but can be used to track the body's response to treatment. A liver biopsy is used to assess the degree of its damage to the disease (damage to the body cells and its scarring), the importance of which is important for the planning of therapy.

Diagnosis is carried out in 2 stages:

- screening for antibodies to the jaundice virus allows you to determine whether a person was infected with a virus;

- with a positive antibody test, a nucleic acid test for hepatitis C virus RNA is performed to determine the form of the disease (acute or chronic).

After this, with positive tests, the doctor needs to assess the degree of liver damage (fibrosis or cirrhosis). This can be done by biopsy or using a variety of non-invasive tests. In addition, the patient should undergo a laboratory test to determine the genotype of the hepatitis C strain. The degree of damage to the liver and the genotype of the virus are used to make decisions about the treatment and management of the disease.

Genotypes of hepatitis C

In order for the disease to be effective, it is important to determine which genotype the virus belongs to. Hepatitis C genotypes are divided into six different types. Typically, patients are infected with a virus with only one genotype, but each of them is actually a mixture of closely related viruses called quasi-species. They tend to mutate and become immune to ongoing treatment. This explains the complexity of the treatment of chronic jaundice.

Below is a list of different genotypes of chronic hepatitis C:

1. Genotype 1a.
2. Genotype 1b.
3. Genotype 2a, 2b, 2c, 2d.
4. The genotype 3a, 3b, 3c, 3d, 3e, 3f.
5. Genotype 4a, 4b, 4c, 4d, 4e, 4f, 4g, 4h, 4i, 4j.
6. Genotype 5a.
7. The genotype 6a.

Genotypes of hepatitis C are of great importance for physicians when issuing therapeutic recommendations. For example, genotype 1 is most difficult to treat, and patients with hepatitis with genotypes 2 and 3 respond better to therapy using a combination of interferon alpha with ribavirin. In addition, when combined therapy is used, the recommended duration of treatment depends on the genotype.

Treatment of hepatitis C

Symptoms and treatment of hepatitis C are closely interrelated, because therapy relies, among other things, on the symptoms of the disease. Before the start of treatment, a thorough examination should be conducted to determine the optimal approach to the patient and his illness. In addition, based on the diagnostic data, the doctor can determine which drug from hepatitis C will be most effective for each specific case. The modern standard of treatment of jaundice is a combination of antiviral therapy with "Interferon" and "Ribavirin", which are effective against all genotypes of viruses. Unfortunately, Interferon is not widely used in medicine, which has a bad effect on the condition of most patients, and the combination of ribavirin with this drug is probably the best cure for hepatitis C to date.

Scientific advances have led to the development of new antiviral drugs against jaundice that are more effective, safer and more portable than existing ones. These are direct-acting antivirals (PDPD), which can not only simplify the treatment of the disease, but also increase the percentage of patients recovering. However, antiviral drugs have serious side effects and often cause the following indispositions in patients:

- headache;

- influenza-like symptoms;

- nausea;

- fatigue;

- an ache in a body;

- Depression;

- skin rashes, allergic reactions.

If the child is diagnosed with hepatitis C, treatment should be aimed at preventing the transition of the acute form of the disease to chronic. Therapy is also mainly complex, and includes combinations such as interferon recombinant preparations, parenteral reaferon and viferon rectal suppositories. Schemes of treatment are selected for each child individually.

For children from 7 years and adolescence, a combination of drugs "Interferon" and "Ribavirin" is possible. Inductors ("Cycloferon") and immunomodulators ("Tactivin") are also prescribed. The duration of jaundice treatment in children depends on many factors and ranges from 24 to 48 weeks. If hepatitis C is diagnosed, treatment should be accompanied by diet, maintaining a healthy diet and lifestyle, avoiding smoking and alcohol. It is important to comply with bed rest and avoid taking unnecessary medications.

There are folk methods for treating jaundice, but resorting to them, it is necessary to consult with the doctor in order not to harm the body and not exacerbate the disease.

Forecasts and implications

When patients are diagnosed with hepatitis C, how many can be lived with is probably one of the most important questions they ask the doctor. Immediately it should be said that the predictions will directly depend on the timeliness of the detection of the disease and the effectiveness of the prescribed therapy. In time the detected symptoms and treatment of hepatitis C, selected correctly - the key to success. Therapy has a good effect on the general condition of the patient, it gives positive dynamics and increases the chances of a favorable outcome of the disease. According to statistics, about 20% of patients who have contracted hepatitis are fully healed, although this does not mean that they are protected from infection in the future. The remaining 80% of patients develop a chronic infection (with the appearance of characteristic symptoms or asymptomatic). These people remain contagious to others for the rest of their lives, as they become carriers of the virus.

When a doctor identifies a patient with hepatitis C (symptoms), treatment, the consequences of the disease - information that should be delivered to the patient as soon as possible and in an accessible form. If a person lives with hepatitis C for a number of years, then he usually develops the following complications:

- chronic hepatitis;

- cirrhosis of the liver;

- liver cancer.

Prevention of disease

Unfortunately, at present there is no vaccine against jaundice. Patients who underwent hepatitis C, reviews leave that it is better to prevent the disease than to treat it later. So, to avoid the spread of disease and other blood-borne diseases, people must comply with the following requirements:

1. You should avoid sharing personal belongings and using items that can be contaminated with blood (for example, razors, toothbrushes, etc.).
2. Avoid ear piercing, piercing, acupuncture procedures, tattooing in places with dubious sterility and non-compliance with hygiene rules.
3. People with hepatitis C virus when visiting a dental clinic or any other health care institution are required to inform the doctor that they are carriers of the virus. Ignoring this requirement is jeopardizing many visitors to the dental clinic.
4. Any cuts and abrasions should be carefully treated with disinfectant solutions and apply a waterproof bandage over them.
5. Individuals with multiple sexual partners should use barrier methods of contraception, such as condoms, to limit the risk of contracting the hepatitis C virus and other sexually transmitted diseases.
6. It is important to carry out preventive measures aimed at safe methods of using tools for injections, injections, tattooing and other.

It should be understood that the hepatitis C virus is not transmitted by everyday contact. Handshakes, kisses and hugs are safe, and in this case there is no need to use special isolation procedures when dealing with infected patients. Contacts that increase the risk of transmission of infection are necessarily accompanied by the release of blood.