Hepatitis C Flashcards
What is hepatitis C?
A blood - borne RNA virus that infects the liver cells
How long is the incubation period for hepatitis C?
6 - 9 weeks
What is the most common route of Hepatitis C transmission?
- 90% of cases via IVDU
How is hepatitis C transmitted?
- Parenteral
- Sexual
- Vertical
How is acute Hepatitis C diagnosed?
HCV RNA detected in blood 1-3 weeks after initial exposure
How does acute Hepatitis C present?
30% of patients will develop features such as ;
- Jaundice
- Fatigue
- Athralgia
- Rise in liver transaminases
What is the significance of anti-HCV antibodies found in blood?
- Antibodies take 2 - 8 weeks to develop
- Patients will eventually develop anti-HCV antibodies it should be remembered that patients who spontaneously clear the virus will continue to have anti-HCV antibodies
What percentage of patients will clear virus after acute infection?
15 % will clear the infection in the acute phase but majority will end up progressing to chronic disease.
How is chronic hepatitis C diagnosed?
Chronic hepatitis C may be defined as the persistence of HCV RNA in the blood for 6 months.
What is the natural history of HCV infection?
- HCV exposure - acute
- Chronic HCV infection
- 80% stable disease
- 20% progress to Hepatitis Cirrhosis - Hepatitis Cirrgosis
- 70% slowely progressive disease
- 30% progress to Hepatocellular carcinoma - Hepatocellular carcinoma
Complications of chronic hepatitis C?
- rheumatological problems: arthralgia, arthritis
- eye problems: Sjogren’s syndrome
- cirrhosis (5-20% of those with chronic disease)
hepatocellular cancer
What is the aim of treatment?
the aim of treatment is sustained virological response (SVR), defined as undetectable serum HCV RNA six months after the end of therapy.
What is the treatment for Hepatitis C?
Currently a combination of protease inhibitors (e.g. daclatasvir) with or without ribavirin are used
