I. What is the definition of hepatitis A?
Hepatitis A (HAV) is a disease caused by the hepatitis A virus, patients may have reduced liver function and some typical signs such as loss of appetite, low grade fever, fatigue, nausea, vomiting, muscle pain, itching, jaundice, yellowing of the eyes, abdominal pain or tightness, discomfort in the upper right abdomen, below the ribs, dark urine.
Hepatitis A is a contagious disease that makes a complete recovery during its improvement.
II. Causes of hepatitis A
The liver is located in the right abdomen, just below the ribs. The liver performs more than 500 vital functions, including handling most nutrients from the gut, removing drugs, alcohol and other harmful substances from the blood and making bile - the green fluid contained in the gallbladder to help digestion of fat. The liver also produces cholesterol, clotting factors and several other proteins.
Because of the complex nature and exposure of the liver to many toxins, it is susceptible to disease. But the liver has an amazing ability to regenerate - it can heal itself by replacing or improving damaged cells. It can also produce new cells that take over the role of permanently damaged cells or until the damage is repaired, the liver remains susceptible to a number of diseases, including viral hepatitis.
Hepatitis A is one of six currently identified strains of viral hepatitis - the others are B, C, D, E and G. These strains differ in the route of transmission and severity of the disease.
1. Origins of Hepatitis A
Hepatitis A virus is mainly spread by mouth through foods and beverages contaminated with the virus. The A virus is present in the intestinal tract, passed out through the stool of sick people. Food, water, objects, or hands that come into contact with A virus will become a source of A virus infection.
Hepatitis A virus can be found inside food, drinking water, swimming pools, in household appliances, personal living things, in soil or water environments ...
In patients, the hepatitis A virus is usually found in the saliva and urine of the patient, but the most is still in the stool.
2. The way hepatitis A is spread
The main route of infection with hepatitis A is via the gastrointestinal tract (stool - mouth), rarely through the bloodstream because very little hepatitis A virus exists in the blood.
Hepatitis A is spread through the following main ways:
Eating unhygienic food or drinking water that carries the hepatitis A virus.
Sharing food, sharing personal living items (eating utensils, towels, towels, toothbrushes, buckets, pots ...) with people with hepatitis A.
Hepatitis A can also be spread through sexual contact if it comes into contact with the anal area of anyone who is sick.
Hepatitis A is usually transmitted "stool-by-mouth". This means that someone with the virus handles you food without washing their hands after using the toilet. You can also get the virus from drinking contaminated water, eating raw shellfish (shellfish, crabs, shrimp, etc.) from water contaminated with wastewater, or coming into close contact with an infected person - even if the person has no symptoms. In fact, the disease spreads more strongly before the symptoms of hepatitis A appear.
III. Manifestations of hepatitis A
1. Clinical
Some people can be infected with the hepatitis A virus without having symptoms. Young children are usually mild, while symptoms in teenagers and adults are often worse. In general, the hepatitis A virus stays in the liver for 2 to 3 weeks before symptoms appear. Symptoms often come on suddenly and are easily mistaken for intestinal flu. Common symptoms include:
● Fatigue: This is the first manifestation of hepatitis A, when the liver is less active, harmful toxins are retained in the body, making the whole body feel tired and uncomfortable. in person.
● Gastrointestinal disorders: The liver is also involved in the digestion of food, so when infected with hepatitis A virus, this role is reduced, then signs of gastrointestinal diseases such as: anorexia, nausea , vomiting, mild abdominal pain in the right rib, diarrhea, constipation….
● Low-grade fever: When the body is inflamed in any part, the white blood cell count is increased to fight against invading agents. If the fever is frequent and at a fixed time, you should check if you have. are not having hepatitis A.
● Skin manifestations: The toxins retained in the liver will be released through itchy skin manifestations, boils. Another sign is that elevated levels of albumin in the liver will cause the skin to turn a light yellow or dark color depending on the severity of the disease.
● Yellow urine: The amount of albumin is also excreted through the kidneys, so when you observe that urine is frequently dark yellow, you should consider immediately checking for hepatitis to improve the disease early. This is a common sign that appears in most hepatitis B, C, alcoholic hepatitis ... ..
● Muscle and joint pain: This symptom is uncommon. About 10% of people infected with hepatitis A have this symptom, which indicates that your disease has progressed to a late, easy-to-chronic stage.
If you observe that the body has 3-4 signs on the coin