Hepatitis C transmitted by blood transfusion

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Hepatitis C transmitted by blood transfusion

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Hepatitis C infection is a liver infection caused by the Hepatitis C virus. Infection with hepatitis C can damage the liver leading to chronic infection.

How is the infection contracted?
Hepatitis C infection is detected by blood borne methods. People with the infection carry the virus in their blood and body fluids. The exchange of these body fluids with a healthy person leads to the transmission of the infection.

The hepatitis C virus can be transmitted via blood transfusion, with the exchange of saliva and semen or vaginal fluid from an infected person.
It is most commonly spread via blood because the virus is concentrated in blood. Injecting drug addicts are most common at risk of contracting the infection because they often share the equipment.

Symptoms of hepatitis C infection
During the early phase of infection there can be no symptoms. Symptoms may not appear until the liver becomes impaired.
When symptoms occur, they can be mild and vague and mimic other common ailments. This raises a problem since an infected person can be successfully transmitting and spreading the infection without being aware of their condition.

Symptoms include flu-like symptoms such as fever, weakness, low appetite, depression etc.
The initial six months are the period of acute infection. About 25% of infected people can successfully fight away the infection and become virus free. At rest the virus remains in the body that gives rise for many years to chronic hepatitis C.

If there are other risk factors such as alcohol use, about 10 to 40% of these people will continue to develop liver scarring often many years after the initial infection.
Around one in five people with cirrhosis will then develop liver failure and 1 in 20 may develop liver cancer. This may require a liver transplant and can be life threatening.