What
is Hepatitis?
How do I get Hepatitis?
What does Hepatitis do to
my body?
Is there a cure for Hepatitis?
How do I find out if I have Hepatitis?
How can I reduce my risk of getting Hepatitis?
How do I learn more about Hepatitis?
What is Hepatitis?
Hepatitis is a serious virus that can attack
the liver. There are 5 types of Hepatitis.
- Most Common:
Hepatitis A
Hepatitis B
Hepatitis C
- Less Common:
Hepatitis D
Hepatitis E
How do I get Hepatitis?
Hepatitis A
- Sex with a person with Hepatitis
A
- Household contact with a person
with Hepatitis A
- Contact with blood
(like sharing needles or other injecting
equipment)
- Poor sanitation (cleanliness)
like forgetting to wash hands after
going to the bathroom or changing
a baby's diaper.
- Contact with feces (poop) of infected
person
- By eating or drinking something
infected with feces (poop) of someone
who has the disease
- By oral to anal contact
- By handling a condom after anal
sex
Hepatitis B
- Having sex with infected person
- Sharing
injection drug needles or others
items used to shoot up drugs
(works, cotton, cookers, etc.)
Hepatitis C
- Coming into contact with blood of
infected person
- Example: Using a razor with blood
on it
- Sharing needles when injecting
drugs
- You can also get Hepatitis from:
- Blood Transfusion
- Injection Drugs (sharing needles)
- Organ Transplants
What does Hepatitis do to my body?
Signs of hepatitis are:
- Yellow eyes and skin
- Stomach pain or swelling
- Muscle weakness
- Joint pain
- Rashes
- Nausea or vomiting
- Dark urine (pee)
- Loss of appetite (not hungry)
- Fever
- Fatigue (tiredness)
Sometimes there are no signs at first. It is very important to
get tested to see if you have Hepatitis.
Is there a cure for Hepatitis?
No. There
is no cure. Ask your doctor about
medicines that will make you feel better and treat Hepatitis.
There are vaccines for Hepatitis
A and Hepatitis B that will prevent the disease. The vaccines
are safe. Ask your doctor about them.
How do I find out if I have Hepatitis?
Ask
your doctor for a Hepatitis test. Or you could visit local hospitals
and STI (sexually transmitted infection) clinics that do these
tests.
How can I reduce my risk of getting Hepatitis?
Don't Have Sex
Vaginal, anal or oral sex can pass
hepatitis.
Use Condoms
If you do decide to have sex, use latex
condoms or other barriers (dams, plastic wrap etc) if you do
have vaginal, anal or oral sex.
Don't Share Injection Drug Needles
If you do inject drugs, make sure you:
- * Use only clean needles, syringes
and other works
* Never share needles, syringes and
other works
* Get tested for HIV every year
Get Tested
How do I learn more about Hepatitis?
- American Social
Health Association (ASHA)
1-800-227-8922.
This line
plays recordings about STI information
24 hrs a day and has health communication specialists available
to answer questions between 9am and 6pm, ET, Monday through
Friday.
www.ashastd.org
- Centers for Disease
Control and Prevention (CDC)
1-800-CDC-INFO
1-800-232-4636
www.cdc.gov
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