What happens if hepatitis b is not treated

Since many people with hepatitis B do not have symptoms, blood tests are used to diagnose the infection. Several different hepatitis B tests are available. Depending on the test, they can determine whether you.

Certain tests can even determine how likely it is that someone who is infected with hepatitis B will transmit it to others. Ask your health-care provider to explain what tests were ordered, when you can expect to get the results, and what those results mean.

If test results show that you are infected with the hepatitis B virus, you should consult a health-care provider that is experienced in caring for people with hepatitis B. This can be an internist or family medicine practitioner, or it may be someone who specializes in treating people with infectious, digestive, or liver diseases. There is no medication available to treat acute hepatitis B.

For people with mild symptoms, health-care providers usually recommend rest, adequate nutrition, and fluids. Those with more severe symptoms may need to be hospitalized. Several medications have been approved to treat people who have chronic hepatitis B, and new drugs are in development. However, not every person with chronic hepatitis B needs medication, and the drugs may cause side effects in some patients.

People who start hepatitis B treatment may need to take medication indefinitely because these medications do not lead to a cure. People with chronic hepatitis B should be under the care of a health-care provider that is knowledgeable about this illness like an internist or provider that specializes in treating people with infectious, digestive, or liver diseases and is able to regularly monitor their liver function. People recently diagnosed with hepatitis B should.

When a pregnant woman comes in for prenatal care, she is given a series of routine blood tests, including one that checks for hepatitis B virus infection. Almost all cases of hepatitis B can be prevented in babies born to infected mothers, but these newborns must receive the necessary shots at the recommended times. The combination of hepatitis B immune globulin known as HBIG and hepatitis B vaccine can be given to infants born to infected mothers within 12 hours of birth to protect them from infection.

Nearly all newborns who become infected with the hepatitis B virus develop lifelong hepatitis B. This can eventually lead to serious health problems, including liver damage, liver cancer, and even death. Hepatitis B vaccination is recommended for all babies to protect them from this serious but preventable disease.

Skip directly to site content Skip directly to page options Skip directly to A-Z link. Viral Hepatitis. Section Navigation. Facebook Twitter LinkedIn Syndicate. Hepatitis B Questions and Answers for the Public. Minus Related Pages. Index of Questions Hepatitis B Overview. What is hepatitis? What is the difference between hepatitis A, hepatitis B, and hepatitis C? What is hepatitis B? What is acute short-term hepatitis B? What is chronic long-term hepatitis B? Who is most likely to get chronic long-term hepatitis B?

How common is hepatitis B in the United States? How common is hepatitis B around the world? Hepatitis B Transmission. How is hepatitis B spread? Can a person spread the hepatitis B virus and not know it? Can the hepatitis B virus be spread through sex? Can hepatitis B be spread through food? Who is at risk for hepatitis B? Who should be tested for hepatitis B? What should I do if I think I have been exposed to the hepatitis B virus?

How long does the hepatitis B virus survive outside the body? How should blood spills be cleaned from surfaces to make sure that hepatitis B virus is gone? If I have been infected with the hepatitis B virus in the past, can I get it again? Can I donate blood if I have hepatitis B? Can I donate organs if I have hepatitis B? Prevention through Vaccination. Can hepatitis B be prevented?

Who should get vaccinated against hepatitis B? Is the hepatitis B vaccine recommended before international travel? Is the hepatitis B vaccine safe? Can I get hepatitis B from being vaccinated? Is it harmful to have an extra dose of hepatitis B vaccine or to repeat the entire hepatitis B vaccine series?

What should be done if hepatitis B vaccine series was not completed? Who should not receive the hepatitis B vaccine? What is a booster dose, and do I need one? Page last reviewed: 30 January Next review due: 30 January Some of the main problems associated with hepatitis B include: Cirrhosis Scarring of the liver cirrhosis affects around 1 in 5 people with chronic hepatitis B, often many years after they first got the infection. Cirrhosis does not usually cause any noticeable symptoms until extensive damage to the liver has occurred, when it can cause: tiredness and weakness loss of appetite weight loss feeling sick very itchy skin tenderness, pain or swelling in the tummy swelling of the ankles There's currently no cure for cirrhosis, although it's possible to manage the symptoms and slow its progression.

Find out more about the treatments for cirrhosis Liver cancer People with cirrhosis caused by hepatitis B have around a 1 in 20 chance of developing liver cancer every year. Symptoms of liver cancer include: unexplained weight loss loss of appetite feeling very full after eating, even if the meal was small feeling and being sick yellow skin and eyes jaundice Treatment for liver cancer may involve surgery to remove the affected section of liver, a procedure to destroy the cancerous cells, or a liver transplant.

Find out more about the treatments for liver cancer Fulminant hepatitis B In less than 1 in cases, short-term acute hepatitis B can lead to a serious problem called fulminant hepatitis B.

Some people with hepatitis C develop glomerulonephritis , a condition that affects the part of the kidney that filters waste from the bloodstream.

If left untreated, this can cause the kidneys to shut down. Hepatitis C may also increase the risk of end-stage renal kidney disease ESRD , according to the study published in the World Journal of Gastroenterology.

The illness involves extremely fast bone turnover, which leads to severe, deep bone pain. Only people with hepatitis C develop this condition, and just 19 cases have been identified since , according to a case study published in November in the journal Endocrinology, Diabetes and Metabolism Case Reports.

According to a report published in May in the New England Journal of Medicine , only about a third of people with hepatitis C receive medical care for their condition. Newer antiviral drugs can clear the virus even in people who have had no luck on earlier medications. They also generally take less time to start working, cause fewer side effects, and can treat and even eliminate illnesses caused by hepatitis C. The CDC recommends that all American adults over age 18 get screened at least once.

Pregnant women should be tested during each pregnancy. People who inject drugs, share needles, or have received maintenance hemodialysis are also at risk. If you are in one of these higher risk groups, you should be tested routinely.

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