(EDITORS NOTE: May is Hepatitis Awareness Month)
Q Is it possible to get hepatitis C from a blood transfusion I received 10 years ago? G.H., Tucson
A People who received blood transfusions prior to 1992 — when screening of donated blood for hepatitis C began in the United States — are at greater risk of having the Hepatitis C virus. (The risk of contracting the virus from a blood transfusion now is less than 0.1 percent.)
Hepatitis C is a liver infection caused by a virus found in blood and other body fluids. The virus can be spread by blood transfusions and by contaminated needles, either by accident or deliberate sharing. While the virus remains in the blood and other body fluids for the rest of the patient's life, it is not spread by shaking hands, hugging, sharing food or drink, or other casual contact.
Symptoms of hepatitis C infection usually appear within 9 weeks after exposure. However, many people have no symptoms and the infection isn't discovered until they are tested for liver function or for the presence of the virus. Symptoms include: fatigue, loss of appetite, abdominal pain, nausea, vomiting, jaundice (yellow skin and eyes), and dark-colored urine.
The number of new hepatitis C infections is much lower than the number of new hepatitis A or B infections; however, about 85 percent of patients with hepatitis C will develop chronic disease. When and how to treat hepatitis C is a rather difficult decision and should be made by a physician very familiar with hepatitis C.
The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention estimates that about 4 million people have chronic hepatitis C infection. The infection is the most common reason for liver transplants, with or without alcohol damage, according to the American Liver Foundation.
—Eskild Petersen, M.D., chief, infectious diseases section, Department of Medicine, The University of Arizona College of Medicine, Tucson
AHSC consists of The University of Arizona Colleges of Medicine, Nursing, Pharmacy, the School of Health Professions, University Medical Center and The University Physicians
Editors Note: ASK AHSC is published by the AHSC Office of Public Affairs. ASK AHSC is available on the Internet at www.ahsc.arizona.edu/opa/answers. To receive ASK AHSC via E-mail, call (520) 626-7301.
Health questions should be sent to: ASK AHSC, AHSC Office of Public Affairs, PO Box 245095, Tucson, AZ 85724-5095, or E-mail to: jspinell@u.arizona.edu. The information here is not intended to replace the advice of your physician. For referral to a UA Physician, please call University Health Connection, (520) 694-8888.
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