Hepatitis A, B, C, D, E: Causes, Symptoms, & Treatments
There are millions of people in the world who are not aware of being infected with viral hepatitis A, B, C, D, E. Find the difference, causes, symptoms, treatments, and more.
Hepatitis is a viral infection that infects the liver. The hepatitis virus is found in human feces and is transmitted either through the consumption of contaminated food, drinks, or through sexual intercourse.
Fossil results have proven that hepatitis viruses have been around during the era of dinosaurs but infected only birds and small mammals. Though hepatitis is usually transmitted from person to person, in rare cases, hepatitis can also occur as an auto-immune disease.
Hepatitis A, B, and C are considered the most common and dangerous types. There is no cure for Hepatitis B and infected individuals usually recover by themselves. The risk of developing a chronic inflammatory liver condition is high after contracting Hepatitis B and C.
Hepatitis affects only the liver. It may cause inflammation or damage the liver cells completely. This, in turn, makes the liver vulnerable to cancer, fibrosis, cirrhosis (scarring), and liver failure.
The common symptoms of viral Hepatitis A, B, C, D, E are:
Currently, there are no treatments that can give a complete cure for hepatitis A, B, C, D, E. HAV, and HEV usually clear by themselves over a period of time anywhere from 6 months to a year. Treatments for HBV and HCV would reduce the viral load drastically. Though HDV seems to clear by itself, treatment is required to prevent it from developing into a chronic condition.
The common ways you can contract viral hepatitis from consuming contaminated food and water are by:
The basic difference between the types of viral hepatitis according to CDC are:
| Differences | Hep A | Hep B | Hep C | Hep D | Hep E |
| Medical Name | HAV | HBV | HCV | HDV | HEV |
| How Serious Is It? | Severe in people above 60 years | Deadly for people above 60 years | Acute infection causes lifelong damages | Lifelong damages and deadly | Deadly for pregnant women |
| How Common Is It in the U.S.? | Infection rates are increasing | Infection rates are stable | It is the most common type | Only immigrants have it at present | Americans who travel to infected regions have it |
| Incubation Period | 15 to 50 Days | 60 to 150 Days | 2 weeks to 6 months | 45 to 60 Days | 2 to 10 weeks |
| How Is Hepatitis Diagnosed? | Symptoms and blood tests | Blood tests, ultrasound, Transient elastography | Anti-HCV test and symptoms | HDV RNA test | Elimination test and travel history |
| Hepatitis Prevention | 2 doses of Vaccination, safe sex, and sanitization | Vaccination and serologic evaluation | Avoid contaminated needles | Hep B vaccines | Hep E vaccines are not approved by FDA yet |
| Hepatitis Treatment | Nutrition, fluid, and medical care | Antiviral medications | Direct-acting antiviral medications | Liver transplant | No treatment, supportive therapy can help |
| What are the chances of it becoming chronic? | Short-term | 2% to 6% | 70% | Less than 5% | Rare |
The risk of hepatitis getting severe increases with age but adults who are at risk involves:
Getting vaccinated, practicing safe sex, being aware of the source of food and water consumed, getting tested within 2 weeks of exposure are a few ways to prevent Hepatitis A, B, C, D, E infections.
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