According to World Health Organization (WHO) data, around 296 million people worldwide live with hepatitis B, with 1.5 million new cases each year. Hepatitis B is a liver infection caused by the hepatitis B virus (HBV).
Hepatitis B is often not detected and felt by sufferers. Even the WHO estimates that only 10.5% of people with hepatitis B know their condition. Here are some things you need to know about hepatitis B.
What is Hepatitis B?
Hepatitis B is a liver infection caused by the hepatitis B virus (HBV). HBV itself is one of five types of hepatitis viruses besides hepatitis viruses types A, C, D, and E. Hepatitis B is transmitted when a person comes into contact with blood, open wounds, or body fluids from a person who has previously been infected with the virus.
For some people, hepatitis B is a mild disease that only lasts a short time or is also known as an acute condition. Although mild cases of hepatitis B can heal by themselves, it can become a chronic condition and cause organ injury, liver failure, and cancer, and it can be life-threatening.
What Are the Symptoms of Hepatitis B?
Symptoms of acute hepatitis B vary, ranging from mild to severe. Usually, symptoms appear 1-4 months after infection, although, in some people, symptoms have started to appear in the first two weeks.
Some common symptoms of hepatitis B are as follows:
- Pain in the abdominal area.
- Dark urine color
- Fever.
- Joint pain.
- Loss of appetite.
- Tired and lethargic.
- The occurrence of yellowing of the skin and eyeballs, also known as jaundice or jaundice.
How Can Hepatitis B Be Transmitted?
Hepatitis B is a viral infectious disease transmitted through blood and other body fluids, including semen and vaginal fluids.
Here are some ways hepatitis B can be passed from one person to another:
- Having sexual intercourse with someone who is infected with HBV without using a condom or other protection.
- Using a toothbrush, razor, or nail clipper that has been exposed to an infected person's blood.
- Get a tattoo or body piercing with non-sterile tools.
- Sharing needles or other injecting equipment with an infected person.
- From mother to child during labor. There is a vaccine that can prevent this condition from occurring.
Although the hepatitis B virus may be found in saliva, it cannot be transmitted through kissing, sneezing, coughing, and sharing utensils.
Hepatitis B can be transmitted to the baby during the delivery process.
What Can Be Done to Prevent Hepatitis B?
To prevent the spread of hepatitis B, you can do the following:
- Get vaccinated against hepatitis B if you have never been infected before.
- Use a condom every time you have sex.
- Use gloves when cleaning other people's bandages, pads, and linens.
- Cover open wounds.
- Don't share toothbrushes, razors, and nail clippers with other people.
Using a condom when having sex can prevent sexually transmitted diseases
Hepatitis B is a serious condition. Even so, hepatitis B attacks in adults should not last long. The body can fight the virus that causes the infection within a few months.
After recovery, the body will also become immune to hepatitis B virus infection in the future. However, if hepatitis B catches a baby at birth, it is unlikely to fully recover.
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References:
Kahn, A., & Soliman, Y. (2022). Hepatitis B. [online]. https://www.healthline.com/health/hepatitis-b
Khatri, M. (2022). Hepatitis B. [online]. https://www.webmd.com/hepatitis/digestive-diseases-hepatitis-b