What is Hepatitis C?

The term hepatitis refers to the inflammation of the liver. The liver is one of the main organs in a living body and has many functions, including processing the blood, ridding the organism from harmful substances, breaking down the nutrients, etc. 

When the liver is inflamed, it doesn’t work properly, and its damage can be caused by medications, regular use of alcohol, toxins, and certain medical conditions. Furthermore, hepatitis A and B are also diseases to watch for, and they are caused by different viruses.

While Hepatitis C begins as a short-term infection, it can range from a mild illness lasting several days to a serious and complicated long-term medical problem. Moreover, it can be transmitted from person to person through high-risk sexual behavior, use of drug contaminated needles, blood transfusion, organ transplant, sharing personal care items, etc. 

Hepatitis C can be classified into two types. 

Acute hepatitis C is a short-term illness that occurs after 3-4 months when exposed to the (HCV) hepatitis C virus. Further acute hepatitis C leads to cancers and chronic infection. 

Suppose you don’t treat acute hepatitis C on time with the best medicines and remedies, then you may likely have cirrhosis. In this condition, scarring of the liver occurs, which leads to death. Furthermore, except for a liver transplant, there is no alternative to treat cirrhosis.

The common signs include:

1. Flu-Like Symptoms,
2. Tiredness
3. High Temperature
4. Aches and Pains
5. Loss of appetite
6. Abdominal pain
7. Jaundice

The second type, chronic hepatitis C, can be a long-term infection if not treated on time. Chronic hepatitis C can cause serious health issues such as liver cancer, liver damage, scarring of the liver (cirrhosis), and even death. The most common symptoms are:

1. Mental confusion (Often Called ‘Brain Fog’) 
2. Depression 
3. Feeling tired
4. Nausea, vomiting, or belly  pain
5. Dark urine 
6.  Jaundice
7. Itchy skin
8. Feeling bloated
9. Joint and muscle pain

Common Signs & Symptoms Some May Easily Ignore

Hepatitis C is a sneaky virus, and people who are exposed to the hepatitis C virus (HPV) lead to acute hepatitis C without even knowing. That’s the reason people usually don’t notice the symptoms and understand they are associated with a serious infection in the liver. 

Also, signs usually show up between 2 and 12 weeks after exposure to the virus. Here we have discussed some mild symptoms that not everyone experiences or, you can say, most people ignore.

Loss of Appetite

When you don’t desire to eat as you used to do, then you must visit your doctor. Loss of appetite is the most ignored symptom in hepatitis C. Poor nutrition further leads to severe body weakness and causes significant problems. Book your doctor’s appointment now!Dark Yellow Urine

We know that dehydration also changes the usual straw to yellow color into dark yellow. Nevertheless, it is not always about taking the right quantity of water. So, people should not misunderstand this symptom and ignore thinking that it’s just dehydration!

Because patients with acute hepatitis C also experience dark yellow urine. However, it doesn’t occur in the initial days or just after exposure to HVC. The urine takes a few months to appear in deep dark yellow color. 

Joint Pain

Having severe aches in joints is not only associated with age-related problems or arthritis, even though it can be experienced by those having acute hepatitis C. 

Moreover, people infected with HCV also feel abdominal pain and are at increased risk of developing rheumatic diseases such as arthritis and other conditions that result from inflammation in the joints.