Hepatitis C Infection Case Study

This research paper is going to review today’s silent killer, the Hepatitis C virus. This paper will talk about the description of the disease, the signs and symptoms, the etiology and risk factors, diagnostic studies, treatments and prognosis of this disease. I had lived with this disease for over ten years before diagnosed so it is important to understand the signs and symptoms so the disease can be identified and a treatment plan can be identified as the sooner it is treated the more likely it will eradicate the disease.

When a doctor uses the term Hepatitis C or HCV, what comes to mind? Many people have little to no knowledge of what it is. Is it deadly? Is there a cure? Is it a virus or disease? There are many questions that enter the mind because there are many concerns associated with an unknown illness. Several people wonder if the virus is similar to hepatitis A or B because there has been education throughout the years that provides more awareness surrounding the two known viruses, but it is discovered there are vast differences. Until recently, the general population was unaware that another hepatitis virus acts as a silent killer. Unlike hepatitis A or B, hepatitis C is a relatively new disease that can go unnoticed until it is too late. The virus was initially named non-A, non-B hepatitis because the virus was identified through numerous blood tests in the 1960s and 1970s (“Hepatitis C History”). The virus was given the name hepatitis C in the 1980s when the Center for Disease Control was able to identify the virus (“Hepatitis C FAQ”). It was identified that the virus enters the human body by entering through blood or bodily fluids and nestles in its permanent home of the liver. This virus is a highly infectious bloodborne pathogen that can cause cirrhosis of the liver and in some cases turn into liver cancer. At this time, there is no cure once the virus has been transmitted. Even though the transmission rate is low, the first step in attacking the virus is to educate people on

You are correct stating educating patients on high risk behaviors such as IV drug use, sharing needles and unprotected sex greatly reduces the number on new cases that are diagnosed. One very important obstacle implementing this intervention is that healthcare “providers also have inadequate knowledge about viral hepatitis, often failing to provide at risk patients with viral hepatitis related services” (Ward, Valdiserri, & Koh, 2012, p. 559). Until we overcome improving awareness and education with the provider, reaching these at risk patients, then we can strengthen awareness in the community setting.

Hepatitis C Virus (HCV), the most common blood-borne pathogen known to man, can last a lifetime and lead to serious liver problems, including cirrhosis, liver cancer, and ultimately death. It is the leading cause of cirrhosis and liver cancer and the most common reason for liver transplantation in the United States. The largest and most significant risk factor for the virus is misuse of IV drugs. Approximately 19,000 people die every year from Hepatitis C related liver disease. The impact of undiagnosed and untreated HCV is expected to increase dramatically over the next 40 to 50 years with 1.76 million persons developing cirrhosis, 400,000 developing HCC (hepatocellular carcinoma), and 1 million persons dying from HCV-associated complications.

The recent changes in US Preventative Service Task Force (USPSTF) recommendations for HCV screening will mean a significant amount of asymptomatic patients will be screened, and test positive for HCV. Identifying patients in the early stages will hopefully prevent irreversible liver damage and lead to treatments that will improve clinical outcomes while reducing the risk of transmission (CMS, 2014). According to CMS, up to 75% of HCV-infected persons are currently unaware of their status (2014).

Hayley is a 24yo, G1 P0, who was seen for a consultation due to hepatitis C. The patient does have a prior history of substance usage but states that she has been clean throughout the entire pregnancy. She does periodically use Goody powders prn and she was told to discontinue this. She also has issues with depression and anxiety and is on Zoloft 50 mg daily. She believes that a viral load was drawn but in looking at the labwork I do not have those results currently. Her hepatitis C antibody test was positive. Overall, she denies any complaints with the pregnancy to date.

Hepatitis C is a prevalent health care problem. According to the Centers of Disease Control and Prevention (CDC, 2016), approximately 2.7-3.9 million of the adult population in the United States is infected with hepatitis C virus (HCV). Some groups of people are at risk for Hepatitis C infection, including current injection drug users, people who received the blood transfusion before 1992, organ recipients from a donor who tested positive for hepatitis C virus, hemodialysis patients, and children born to a hepatitis C mother (CDC, 2016). Hepatitis C causes embarrassment and isolation from the society. Self-esteem and understanding of the

Medicine is one of our most powerful assets as human-beings, it allows us to extend the life expectancy and resist disease and infection that we would not have been able to in the past. Even though there were many advancements in medicines there are still very powerful diseases such cancer, diabetes, STDs, epidemic diseases, and the forms of hepatitis. A recent breakthrough may have led to the discovery of the cure for hepatitis-C. This is very important for society in multiple forms and I believe with this discovery we as a society may be able to destroy this form of hepatitis and development new opportunities in other parts of the medical field.

Hepatitis C is a blood-borne pathogen that is expected to cause over 190,000 deaths between 2010 and 2019.1 HIV is about 5 times less common than hepatitis C virus (HCV) and in 2007 deaths due to HCV surpassed those due to HIV. The infection is more common in populations of high-risk (the homeless and prisoners) who predominantly do not participate in surveys, therefor the number infected with HCV is actually higher than reported. There are a number of risk factors for the infection, but injection-drug use is number one.

Hepatitis C is a form of liver inflammation caused by the hepacivirus, a member of the Flaviviridae family.It is a highly infectious blood born disease most commonly transmitted by shared needles among drug users. According to the CDC it affects approximately 3.9 million Americans and unfortunately 2.7 million of those individuals are chronically infected. Because the signs and symptoms may not appear sometimes for up to 20-30 years, many people may die from the chronic illness as the disease has a higher treatment response in the acute stages.

The data regarding Hepatitis C (HCV) in Australia has been managed and monitored by the National Notifiable Disease Surveillance System managed by the Australian Department of Health.

My uncle was not the only person to become infected with the hepatitis C virus, but in fact many people are presently struggling to keep it under control. Today four million Americans are infected with the hepatitis C virus and there are thirty thousand new cases of this virus found each year (Turkington 9). Hepatitis C takes ten thousand lives each year just in the United States, and without effective treatment the death rate is expected to triple in the next fifteen years (Turkington 9). Seventy-five percent of those infected with the virus will develop chronic hepatitis and half of those people will develop cirrhosis of the liver (Turkington 9). The hepatitis C virus is sometimes referred to as the “Hidden Epidemic” because an

Hepatitis C viral (HCV) infection is one of the many chronic illnesses that disproportionately affect the 2 million persons currently incarcerated in US jails and prisons. (ACA, 2015). HCV is most frequently acquired through exposure to infected blood in persons who injected drugs any time in their lifetime. Offenders are statistically at increased risk for bloodborne pathogen infections such as HCV because of the strong association of chronic addiction and criminal behavior. Correctional health care systems have more patients with HCV infection, on a percentage basis, than any other major health care system in the United States.

Hepatitis C has been referred to as a "Silent Epidemic," since it usually progresses slowly over many years. Most people who are infected with hepatitis C are not aware of any noticeable symptoms for as long as one to two decades after they are infected. In fact, by the time symptoms appear, the virus has probably already begun to damage the liver. If the liver is injured and stops functioning, death will always be the outcome (Lieber). Liver failure from chronic hepatitis C is one of the most common causes of liver transplants in the United States.

Seeing that Hepatitis C is transmitted through the blood, there is a stigma that goes along with having the disease. Hepatitis C is most commonly acquired through sharing needles, bad sterilization of medical/surgical equipment, and Hepatitis C can be transmitted sexually. All of these modes of transmissions (besides the faulty sterilization) can reinforce the stigma that goes along with Hepatitis C. However, many Hepatitis C patients acquired it years ago from the lack of testing blood transfusions. Completely not the patients fault, and yet they’re forced to live with this chronic liver disease.