Symptoms of hepatitis a, what should you look out for?

Hepatitis A signs and symptoms

Hepatitis A is one of the most common hepatitis diseases worldwide, both with signs and without symptoms. Hepatitis A virus transmission generally occurs when a person consumes water or food that is contaminated with the virus.

A person can also experience signs of hepatitis A through having sex with someone with hepatitis, even if they don't show any signs.

Therefore, recognizing the characteristics of hepatitis A is important to help you determine what treatment steps need to be taken. Following are some of the stages that occur when symptoms of hepatitis A appear.

Stage 1

Initially, the hepatitis A virus that enters the liver has not multiplied. The virus incubation period can last for 14-28 days, so there may not be any symptoms that appear.

Even if you don't have any symptoms, you can pass the virus on to other people.

Stage 2

The next stage of hepatitis A symptoms usually lasts 10 days. At this stage there are a variety of health problems that are similar to flu symptoms, including:

a low-grade fever of up to 39.5 ° Celsius,
dry throat,
sneeze,
dark urine color,
loss of appetite,
weight loss,
fatigue,
changes in stool texture and color,
muscle and joint pain, as well
stomach ache.

Stage 3

In stage three, the symptoms of hepatitis A will last longer, which is for 1 to 3 weeks. In some cases, signs of hepatitis can last up to 12 weeks.

In addition, the features of hepatitis A, which resemble the flu-like signs, also begin to subside and are replaced by health problems such as:

yellowing of the skin and membranes of the eyes (jaundice),
changes in the color of urine to be thick and dark,
enlarged spleen,
itching of the skin, as well
swelling of the liver (hepatomegaly).

Stage 4

The last is stage four, when the viral infection starts to stop and the body begins to recover. Within a few months, the signs of hepatitis A previously experienced will begin to improve.

The good news is that the body will form antibodies after a full recovery, making it more immune to hepatitis A virus infection. Even so, signs of hepatitis A can come back and cause complications, such as cirrhosis of the liver and liver cancer.

Who often experiences symptoms of hepatitis A?

Reporting from the American Family Physician, the risk of developing symptoms of this type of hepatitis will increase with age.

Most children under 6 years of age may not show symptoms, but can pass it on to others, especially through faecal-oral transmission (fecal particles from one person moving to another person's mouth).

In addition, more severe symptoms and more serious health effects were more common in the older group.

When is it necessary to see a doctor?

Everyone who has hepatitis A will usually experience symptoms of varying duration. The features of mild hepatitis A generally last 1 - 2 weeks.

Most people get better after 3 weeks of the infection start. However, some severe cases of HAV infection can cause symptoms for 3 - 9 months.

That is why you need to immediately consult a doctor when experiencing the symptoms that have been mentioned, especially if you experience several conditions such as:

a gradual change in symptoms,
symptoms appear for 2 weeks or more,
after traveling from a place that has hepatitis A,
live or interact with people with hepatitis A, as well
have sex with people with hepatitis.

Recognizing the characteristics of hepatitis A well can help the process of treating hepatitis. This is because the diagnosis of hepatitis A will depend on the symptoms you are experiencing.

The doctor will usually recommend undergoing a blood test to detect the presence of the hepatitis virus in the body. Therefore, continue to be vigilant if you are aware of frequent interactions with hepatitis A patients.

If you have further questions, please contact your doctor to get the right solution.