One of the most common liver diseases is hepatitis. It manifests itself in acute and chronic forms with different etiologies. The causes of the disease may be different, but in any case, it is not easy to deal with it and the quality of life of the patient is significantly reduced.
Provocateurs of disease
There are several options for contracting hepatitis. The source of the causative agent of viral hepatitis, for example, can be the patient himself, and the carrier of the virus can be his blood or waste products.
Hepatitis can also develop as a result of exposure to toxic substances. There is alcoholic hepatitis or toxic if there was exposure to other harmful chemicals - cryptogenic hepatitis.
In the case of a malfunction of the immune system, autoimmune hepatitis develops, where the body itself attacks the liver cells. This can happen if the person has other medical conditions. For example, metabolic disorders or congenital deficiency of copper (iron) in the body cause complications and provokeliver disease.
Viral hepatitis is the most common, infection occurs through different sources. The virus usually affects the hepatobiliary system, resulting in impaired liver function. General toxic dyspeptic and hepatolienal syndromes develop. With these syndromes, not only the liver enlarges. The patient feels nausea, there is an eructation with an unpleasant odor and the general condition is extremely uncomfortable.
Viral disease
A virus with a single strand of ribonucleic acid and a lipid envelope is the causative agent of hepatitis. This virus is from the family of picornaviruses, it causes hepatitis of groups A, B and C. All these infectious diseases have a common clinical manifestation - liver cells are affected. The organ suffers due to the fact that the virus has a devastating effect on it.
For a person, such a disease is extremely dangerous. Varieties of the disease that are transmitted virally are often combined under one name "jaundice". This word is quite often heard, because it is the icteric complexion and eye proteins that is a clear symptom of the disease. But this is only one sign of the disease, and it is not enough to talk about such a diagnosis as hepatitis. The disease can manifest itself independently and as part of the pathological process that takes place in the body.
Classification of viral hepatitis
Proper diagnosis allows for the most effective treatmenteffective in one form or another of the disease. The causative agent of infectious hepatitis is manifested by a number of specific symptoms. In medicine, they are classified according to different criteria:
- the severity of the course of the disease can be mild, moderate and severe;
- depending on the course of the disease and duration, a chronic form, subacute and acute are distinguished;
- the location of the organ lesion is also important to consider in the treatment, it can be focal, parenchymal and mesenchymal.
Each form of viral hepatitis has its own distinctive features, and it is worth dwelling on them in more detail.
Hepatitis A
The characteristics of the causative agent of hepatitis A has a certain similarity with other infectious viruses, but it also has its own characteristics. The virus that carries this disease, in addition to having a single-strand RNA genome, also carries the natural HA-Ag antigen. As soon as it enters the body and enters the liver, an active process of reproduction immediately begins. The clinic manifests itself in various forms of severity. The incubation period can take up to 50 days before the first signs appear.
According to a biochemical blood test, the diagnosis is confirmed accurately, usually it sounds like Botkin's disease. It is carried by a virus of the genus hepatovirus. Contact with him is quite simple: through unwashed fruits and vegetables, dirty water, even if it does not look like that. Therefore, you can not drink from unverified sources. And dirty hands and food cooked in unhygienic conditions can become a source of infection.
Mostcommon ways of infection are close household interaction, any contact with the patient's fecal material. That is why children most often suffer from this virus, they often neglect the rules of personal hygiene.
Hepatitis A symptoms
Different types of hepatitis pathogens manifest themselves in different ways and have varying degrees of destructive effects on the liver. Of all types, hepatitis A is considered the most favorable for treatment and has minimal negative consequences for the body in the future.
The first symptoms are flu-like, body temperature rises. After a couple of days, the urine becomes dark in color, the feces become discolored.
The next stage is jaundice, the patient may feel a little better at this time. The disease itself can last up to two months, but the recovery period can be delayed for 6 months. In the process of treatment, it is important to follow the doctor's recommendations regarding the diet, observe bed rest and take hepatoprotectors.
Features of hepatitis B
This type of hepatitis is also called serum hepatitis. In this case, severe liver damage occurs. The disease is carried by a DNA-containing hepatitis virus. Examples of infection with this form often end in cirrhosis and liver cancer. In the shell of this virus there is an antigen that provokes the formation of antibodies to it. These specific antibodies can be detected in blood serum. The virus is extremely resistant to various temperature extremes, it dies if only it is boiled for20 minutes. That is why it is extremely common in nature.
Treatment requires an integrated approach. The treatment regimen includes hepatoprotectors, hormones, antibiotics and drugs that support the immune system.
This hepatitis pathogen is transmitted through the blood. Infection can occur through sexual contact, blood transfusion or other medical procedures. The fetus can become infected from the mother.
This form of the disease is manifested by fever, vomiting and nausea, joint pain. The stool may become discolored, and the urine becomes dark in color. Jaundice in this case is uncharacteristic. Eruptions may appear on the body, and on examination it can be seen that the liver and spleen are enlarged in size. A person can carry the virus for 6 months and not know about it.
Hepatitis C infection pathways, symptoms
During the course of the disease, there is a moderate intoxication of the liver and an acute lesion. After the acute phase of the disease, hepatitis can become chronic; this occurs in 70-80% of patients. The chronic form is dangerous because it often leads to the appearance of cancers in the liver. The incubation period of the virus is sometimes delayed for 30 weeks.
Post-transfusion hepatitis is considered the most severe form of hepatitis. The pathogen is most often transmitted through the blood (non-sterile syringes, transfusion). Sexual transmission is much less common than in the previous case. Sick and carriers of the virus are the source of infection.
Hepatitis C can be combined with other causative agents of hepatitis, this significantly aggravates the patient's situation, the course of the disease becomes more complicated, if two viruses collide, death is possible.
Danger of hepatitis D
The disease is also called delta hepatitis, has its own distinctive features. In the human body, this virus cannot reproduce on its own, it needs a “helper”, it is the hepatitis B virus. The causative agent of delta hepatitis does not cause a separate disease, but provokes significant complications in the course of hepatitis B. Two viruses in combination cause the most severe form of the disease, superinfection.
Danger of hepatitis E
Hepatitis E has a significant similarity with hepatitis A. True, in the case of a severe form of the disease, it affects not only the liver: the effect of the virus also extends to the kidneys.
Infection occurs when hygiene rules are not followed, most often through contact with the patient's feces. The hot season is a favorable period for the vital activity of the virus. In most cases, the course of the disease is favorable and recovery occurs fairly quickly. Pregnant women in the third trimester are at risk. According to statistics, in such cases, up to 40% of diseases end in death. When a pregnant woman gets hepatitis E, the fetus dies in almost all cases. Prevention is simple - hygiene.
Another member of the hepatitis family is hepatitis G
Among viral hepatitis, this representative is the last. The signs and symptoms are very similar to thosecharacteristic of hepatitis C. The difference is that it is less dangerous for the patient. Hepatitis G is not characterized by progression towards the development of liver cirrhosis or cancer. But the combination of these two types of hepatitis does not exclude the possibility of developing cirrhosis.
Precautions against infection with viral forms
It is impossible to protect yourself absolutely from all diseases, but you can make every effort to protect yourself at least in those cases where it is possible. Despite the fact that there are mild forms of the course of the disease, no one would want to hear the diagnosis of hepatitis. The causative agent of the disease, however, can be in close proximity to us. You can take preventive measures to protect yourself from infection as much as possible. Different types of hepatitis live in different sources, and therefore, in order not to get infected, there are all kinds of preventive methods that are quite affordable, but there are also common ones. In order not to get sick with any of them, you should follow these simple rules:
- before eating vegetables and fruits, they must be washed;
- do not drink water from untested sources and do not swim in dirty water, especially if sewage gets there;
- do not use other people's hygiene products;
- keep the rooms clean;
- use condoms during sexual intercourse;
- monitor the cleanliness of the instruments when taking blood;
- vaccinate;
- carefully choose beauty salons, dental clinics;
- use disposable medic altools.
Currently, all types of diseases are diagnosed at the earliest stages. This gives a good chance to defeat the disease in the early stages.
Importance of diet for hepatitis
Hepatitis treatment is complex, and diet in this case is of great importance. Properly selected nutrition can reduce the load on the liver. And this makes it possible for acute forms of the disease to go into remission. Failure to follow the rules of proper nutrition causes the diseased organ to work with an increased load. With hepatitis, this should not be allowed in any case.
Doctors recommend not to eat cold food, it needs to be warmed up. Products must be boiled or baked, in some cases grated. Food should be taken 5-6 times a day.
Do not drink alcohol and other toxic substances. Unnecessarily do not take drugs that cause side effects on the liver.
Toxic hepatitis
Besides contracting viral infections, hepatitis can be acquired in another way. Toxic hepatitis develops as a result of exposure to the body of toxic substances. There is an acute inflammation of the liver or a chronic form is acquired. Poisonous substances include drugs, industrial poisons, alcohol, poisonous plants.
In some cases, a single exposure to a toxic substance is already capable of causing a person to feel unwell. The affected organ increases in size, manifests itselfjaundice, digestion is disturbed and the patient feels weak. Pain appears in the right hypochondrium.
During treatment it is necessary to avoid contact with the toxin. Next, carry out manipulations to remove it from the body. In addition, it is necessary to use drugs that help maintain the functioning of the liver and restore the work of hepatocyte cells. If you do not respond in time and do not receive treatment, then serious complications and even death are possible.
Forms of the course of toxic hepatitis and symptoms
The liver is a biological filter, and therefore it is natural that the removal and neutralization of hazardous substances occurs there. Toxins and allergens enter the liver tissue and damage its cells, the blood supply in the vessels fails, and the organ's performance is impaired. Pathology manifests itself in an acute form, when a single dose of poison in high concentration has entered the body. In the chronic form, exposure to the toxin occurs in small doses, but for a long time.
Regardless of what was the cause of the pathology, liver dysfunction can be identified by a number of symptoms. The skin, sclera and tongue become yellow, the urine becomes dark in color. The processing of bilirubin is impaired, and it spreads throughout the body through the circulatory system. The inflamed organ increases in size, its protective capsule stretches, and pain appears. The digestive function of the liver is disturbed, nausea, vomiting appear,loss of appetite.
The outflow of bile is disturbed, the products of its processing accumulate in the skin cells, and the patient feels itching. In severe cases, the production of proteins that are responsible for blood clotting is disrupted and hematomas, bruises and extensive bruising appear on the skin. In the acute form of the disease, these symptoms may appear after 2-4 days. The fastest damage to the liver occurs with mushroom poisoning, symptoms appear after 8 hours.
Any form of hepatitis is diagnosed and treated only in medical institutions. Self-treatment with this diagnosis is not carried out.
