Hepatitis C is a virus that infects the liver, affecting the proper function of the liver and causing fatal damage in later stages. Hepatitis C virus is a blood-borne virus, which means that it is transmitted through the blood and not by other means. When infected blood comes into contact with healthy blood, the virus tends to find a new host. Through the blood, this virus enters the liver cells and multiplies there for a longer time. One of the things that is counted as complexity is that in some cases there is hardly any symptom. This means that the person will not know about the infection and the virus remains in the liver for years, causing cirrhosis of the liver or cancer.

Stages of infection

Hepatitis C infects a person in different stages. All these stages have their own symptoms. In some people, the hepatitis C virus shows symptoms within a few weeks of exposure. And in some cases, it may not show any signs even after six months.

1. Incubation internship: In this stage, the virus multiplies and this stage can last up to 2 to 10 weeks.
2. Acute stage: At this stage, the infection is around six months old. In some people, the virus tends to clear from the body on its own.
3. Chronic stage: at this stage, the infection is almost 10-20 years old. It has already caused some damage to the liver tissue, leading to liver scarring called cirrhosis.

In severe cases of liver cirrhosis, scar tissue replaces normal liver tissue and causes inflammation. Also, due to cirrhosis, there is an increased chance of liver cancer.

Common symptoms

Some common symptoms that an infected person can present are:

• Fever

• Jaundice

• Body ache

• Dark colored stool

• Dark urine

• Tired

• Muscle bread

• Stomach bread

• Nausea

• Vomiting

Also, if the person has chronic hepatitis C, the symptoms can be much more serious, such as:

• Accumulation of fluid in the body such as ascites and edema

• Weightloss

• Encephalopathy

• Gallstones

• Liver failure

• Spider angioma

• Bleeding and bruising

• Concentration problems

Risk factor’s

Since this disease is contracted from infected blood, there must be blood contact between a healthy person and an infected person. There are several cases in which there is a possibility of contracting a hepatitis infection, such as:

• Sharing drug needles

• Sharing tattoo needles

• Unprotected sex

• Using personal items from an infected person

• From mother to fetus

Those who have had tattoos, or those who use drugs, should be tested for hepatitis C. Infected needles are often one of the main causes of infection. Also, people with HIV, who recently needed a blood transfusion, had an organ transplant, or are on kidney dialysis, should be tested.

There are many ways that doctors tend to test for hepatitis C infections. Some common ways include the liver function test, the HCV RNA test, and the anti-HCV antibody test. Getting tested on time will help the patient to recover quickly and will also reduce the chances of liver dysfunction.