Hepatitis B
What will happen to me?
Most people recover from hepatitis B without treatment. But in a few people it is a serious illness that lasts a long time.
Hepatitis B can make your liver swell and stop it from working properly. Later, you could get liver cancer, or a liver disease called cirrhosis.
You need a healthy liver. Your liver does many jobs to keep you alive. For example, it removes poisons from your blood. If
your liver doesn't work properly, you can get very sick.
If you get hepatitis B, you could have it for a short time and get better quickly, or you could have it for a long time. If
you have it for a long time it can damage your liver. Doctors call these types of infections short-term (acute) or long-term (chronic).
More than 9 in 10 people who get hepatitis B get short-term hepatitis B (acute hepatitis B). They have mild symptoms and get better quickly. People who have short-term hepatitis B may not even know they have hepatitis
B. Their bodies naturally get rid of the virus and they have antibodies in their blood, which stop them from getting infected
by hepatitis B again.
1 It's quite rare for people with short-term hepatitis B to get seriously ill because of hepatitis B.
Source:
Ganem D, Prince AM.
Hepatitis B virus infection - natural history and clinical consequences.
New England Journal of Medicine. 2004; 350: 1118-1129.
Ganem D, Prince AM.
Hepatitis B virus infection - natural history and clinical consequences.
New England Journal of Medicine. 2004; 350: 1118-1129.
A small number of people who get hepatitis B (between 5 in 100 and 10 in 100) don't get better naturally. They still have
the virus in their blood.
2 This is called long-term hepatitis B or chronic hepatitis B. Long-term hepatitis B is a complicated illness and can affect people in different ways.
Source:
Tassopoulos NC, Papaevangelou GJ, Sjogren MH, et al.
Natural history of acute hepatitis B surface antigen-positive hepatitis in Greek adults.
Gastroenterology. 1987; 92: 1844-1850.
Tassopoulos NC, Papaevangelou GJ, Sjogren MH, et al.
Natural history of acute hepatitis B surface antigen-positive hepatitis in Greek adults.
Gastroenterology. 1987; 92: 1844-1850.
Babies and children are more likely to get long-term hepatitis B.
3 Hepatitis B is also more likely to become long term if you have an illness that affects your
immune system (your immune system includes all the parts of your body that fight off illness). For example, HIV is a disease that can seriously
affect your immune system. (For more information, see our section on HIV). If your immune system has been weakened by another illness, it will not be able to protect you against hepatitis B.
3
Source:
Mast EE, Margolis HS, Fiore AE, et al.
A Comprehensive Immunization Strategy to Eliminate Transmission of Hepatitis B Virus Infection in the United States.
Morbidity and Mortaility Weekly Report: Recommendations and Reports. 2005; 54: 1-31.
Mast EE, Margolis HS, Fiore AE, et al.
A Comprehensive Immunization Strategy to Eliminate Transmission of Hepatitis B Virus Infection in the United States.
Morbidity and Mortaility Weekly Report: Recommendations and Reports. 2005; 54: 1-31.
immune system
The immune system is made up of the parts of the body that are devoted to fighting infection. The body is constantly being threatened by infections from things like bacteria, viruses and parasites. The immune system fights these infections in different ways. At the microscopic level, the immune system uses antibodies and white blood cells, which travel in the blood and target infectious agents, such as bacteria. These microscopic parts of the immune system either kill the infectious agent directly, or take it to other parts of the body, like the spleen, where it can be dealt with. The lymph nodes are another important part of the immune system. Within them, white blood cells filter through the foreign material that has entered the blood, to see if there are any infections. When you have a swollen gland during a cold, this is actually a lymph node that is reacting to the infection. Unfortunately, it is possible for the immune system to become confused and to use its destructive powers to target healthy parts of the body. Diseases that result from this type of situation are called autoimmune diseases.
The immune system is made up of the parts of the body that are devoted to fighting infection. The body is constantly being threatened by infections from things like bacteria, viruses and parasites. The immune system fights these infections in different ways. At the microscopic level, the immune system uses antibodies and white blood cells, which travel in the blood and target infectious agents, such as bacteria. These microscopic parts of the immune system either kill the infectious agent directly, or take it to other parts of the body, like the spleen, where it can be dealt with. The lymph nodes are another important part of the immune system. Within them, white blood cells filter through the foreign material that has entered the blood, to see if there are any infections. When you have a swollen gland during a cold, this is actually a lymph node that is reacting to the infection. Unfortunately, it is possible for the immune system to become confused and to use its destructive powers to target healthy parts of the body. Diseases that result from this type of situation are called autoimmune diseases.
Source:
Mast EE, Margolis HS, Fiore AE, et al.
A Comprehensive Immunization Strategy to Eliminate Transmission of Hepatitis B Virus Infection in the United States.
Morbidity and Mortaility Weekly Report: Recommendations and Reports. 2005; 54: 1-31.
Mast EE, Margolis HS, Fiore AE, et al.
A Comprehensive Immunization Strategy to Eliminate Transmission of Hepatitis B Virus Infection in the United States.
Morbidity and Mortaility Weekly Report: Recommendations and Reports. 2005; 54: 1-31.
If you are diagnosed with hepatitis B, your doctor will carry out blood tests to see if it has cleared up. If it doesn't clear
up within six months, your doctor will probably send you to see a specialist. You might have to have more tests, including
a liver biopsy. A liver biopsy is where a doctor takes a tiny part of your liver for tests. This is the best way to see how the hepatitis
B virus is affecting you.
4
Source:
Aggarwal R, Ranjan P.
Preventing and treating hepatitis B infection.
BMJ. 2004; 329: 1080-1086.
Aggarwal R, Ranjan P.
Preventing and treating hepatitis B infection.
BMJ. 2004; 329: 1080-1086.
Your doctor will probably recommend that you have tests for some other infections that you may have caught, especially hepatitis
C. (For more information, see our information on hepatitis C.)
Some people with hepatitis B look and feel well but they can still infect other people. Doctors call them chronic carriers. If you are a chronic carrier, it means you have low levels of hepatitis B in your blood and it is not growing in your liver
cells. If hepatitis B is not growing in your liver cells, you will not need treatment. But, in about 1 in 4 chronic carriers,
hepatitis B gradually damages their liver. They can go on to get the liver disease cirrhosis or they can get liver cancer.
If you are a chronic carrier, your doctor will give you blood tests every six to 12 months to check your liver is not being
damaged by hepatitis B.
However, you can still pass the virus on to other people if you are a carrier, so you need to be careful to stop this from
happening. For example, it is very important to use condoms when you have sex and not to share needles or anything that could
have your blood on it (like razors or jewellery that goes through piercings).
4 For more information, see What should I do if I have hepatitis B?
Source:
Aggarwal R, Ranjan P.
Preventing and treating hepatitis B infection.
BMJ. 2004; 329: 1080-1086.
Aggarwal R, Ranjan P.
Preventing and treating hepatitis B infection.
BMJ. 2004; 329: 1080-1086.
Some people with chronic hepatitis B might be quite ill and need drug treatment to limit how much damage the virus does. Drug
treatments can also help to get rid of the virus in some people, but it is rare.
5 For more information, see Drug treatments for hepatitis B.
Source:
Drug and Therapeutics Bulletin.
What can be done about hepatitis B?
Drug and Therapeutics Bulletin. 2006; 44: 41-44.
Drug and Therapeutics Bulletin.
What can be done about hepatitis B?
Drug and Therapeutics Bulletin. 2006; 44: 41-44.
If you have long-term hepatitis B, you are at greater risk of having problems with your liver.
3
Source:
Mast EE, Margolis HS, Fiore AE, et al.
A Comprehensive Immunization Strategy to Eliminate Transmission of Hepatitis B Virus Infection in the United States.
Morbidity and Mortaility Weekly Report: Recommendations and Reports. 2005; 54: 1-31.
Mast EE, Margolis HS, Fiore AE, et al.
A Comprehensive Immunization Strategy to Eliminate Transmission of Hepatitis B Virus Infection in the United States.
Morbidity and Mortaility Weekly Report: Recommendations and Reports. 2005; 54: 1-31.
- Around 2 in 10 people with chronic hepatitis B go no to get a liver disease called cirrhosis. If you have cirrhosis, your liver doesn't work properly any more.
- Of these people, 9 in 100 will get liver cancer. Hepatitis B is the most common cause of liver cancer in the world.
Source:
Drug and Therapeutics Bulletin.
What can be done about hepatitis B?
Drug and Therapeutics Bulletin. 2006; 44: 41-44.
5
Sources for the information on this page:
- Ganem D, Prince AM.Hepatitis B virus infection - natural history and clinical consequences.New England Journal of Medicine. 2004; 350: 1118-1129.
- Tassopoulos NC, Papaevangelou GJ, Sjogren MH, et al.Natural history of acute hepatitis B surface antigen-positive hepatitis in Greek adults.Gastroenterology. 1987; 92: 1844-1850.
- Mast EE, Margolis HS, Fiore AE, et al.A Comprehensive Immunization Strategy to Eliminate Transmission of Hepatitis B Virus Infection in the United States.Morbidity and Mortaility Weekly Report: Recommendations and Reports. 2005; 54: 1-31.
- Aggarwal R, Ranjan P.Preventing and treating hepatitis B infection.BMJ. 2004; 329: 1080-1086.
- Drug and Therapeutics Bulletin. What can be done about hepatitis B?Drug and Therapeutics Bulletin. 2006; 44: 41-44.
This information was last updated on Jul 25, 2008
This information is for educational use only, and is not a substitute for prompt professional medical advice. Readers should always consult a physician or other professional for advice and treatment.
© BMJ Publishing Group Limited 2009. All rights reserved.
© BMJ Publishing Group Limited 2009. All rights reserved.
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Source: ConsumerReportsHealth.org Copyright © 2005-2008 Consumers Union of U.S., Inc.
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