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What is Hepatitis C?
WHAT IS HEPATITIS?
Hepat (liver) + itis (inflammation)
Hepatitis is an inflammation of the liver. It may be caused by viruses, alcohol, drugs and other toxins.
The three main hepatitis viruses are hepatitis A, B & C.
Hepatitis C affects 5 million people in the United States and over 200 million people in the world. It is the leading cause of liver transplantation in the United States.
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HEPATITIS A |
HEPATITIS B |
HEPATITIS C |
| Incubation |
2 to 7 weeks |
6 to 23 weeks |
2 to 25 weeks |
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| Transmission |
Fecal/oral route; person to person contact;
contaminated food or water |
Contact with infected blood; contaminated IV needles; mother to newborn; sexual contact |
Contact with infected blood; contaminated IV needles; sharing personal hygiene implements; less than 5% mother to newborn; not easily spread through sex |
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| Symptoms |
Jaundice, fatigue, nausea & vomiting, abdominal pain, fever |
May have none; mild flu-like symptoms, jaundice, fatigue, fever |
Same as hepatitis B |
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| Impact of Disease |
Never becomes chronic; self-limiting |
Becomes chronic in 10% of cases |
Becomes chronic in
75 – 85% of cases |
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Vaccine
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Yes, two doses |
Yes, three doses |
No |
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