C virus
Hepatitis C virus is an encephalic virus containing RNA-like DNA, which is about 50 nanometers in diameter. It belongs to the family of yellow viruses, a virus that primarily affects humans. However, From chimpanzees.
The RNA is highly variable, due to the absence of an effective screening mechanism during its reproduction, which makes the virus evolve over time. In addition, the virus is able to escape from the host’s immune system if it can not Effectively identify and eliminate the virus; because the areas exposed to mutations are highly variable in this virus, the mutation that symbolizes the proteins coated. As these proteins change in the virus, the body fails to recognize it. As a result, most people with hepatitis C develop And chronic infection. In addition, this discrepancy hinders the development of an effective vaccine against it. For the C virus, the virus is left in the body, but it does not cause any symptoms that indicate its existence, it is in a state of inactivity and does not reproduce at high speed as in The acute state of the disease.
Hepatitis C
Hepatitis C is a hepatitis C-induced liver disease that ranges from a mild disease lasting a few weeks to a serious liver attack for life, spread primarily through contact with the infected person’s blood, and hepatitis C can be a disease Sharp or chronic.
- Acute Infection: A short-term disease occurs in the first six months after someone has been infected with the hepatitis virus. For most people, about 75% of them have a chronic infection.
- Chronic infection: A long-term disease occurs when the hepatitis C virus remains in the person’s body for more than six months and can last a lifetime. This disease leads to serious liver problems, including liver cirrhosis (liver scarring), or liver cancer.
Symptoms of chronic hepatitis C infection
Many patients with chronic hepatitis C may not show symptoms of liver disease. If the symptoms are present, they are usually mild, unspecified, and come intermittently, and may include the following:
- Fatigue and tiredness.
- Moderate pain on upper right quadrant (liver pain).
- nausea.
- Anorexia.
- Muscle and joint pain.
- diarrhea.
- Similarly, clinical tests are likely to be normal, or show only hypertrophy and mild pain in the liver, and some patients have signs of spider blood vessels or redness and thickness of the hands.
Symptoms of cirrhosis of the liver
If the patient is suffering from severe pain, symptoms and clear signs ranging from extreme tiredness, muscle weakness, loss of appetite, nausea, weight loss, itching, dark urine, fluid retention, and flatulence appear to be resorted to a clinical examination that shows the following:
- Hepatomegaly.
- splenomegaly.
- Jaundice.
- Muscle wasting.
- Bruises on the skin without cause.
- Aspiration, ie, fullness, abdominal fluid.
- Swollen ankle.
Complications of cirrhosis
Complications that may occur outside the liver, which occur in 1-2% of people with hepatitis C, are the lack of blood globulins in the blood, which are characterized by the following:
- Skin rash, such as: purpura, vasculitis, or urticaria.
- Joint and muscle pain.
- Kidney disease.
- Neuropathy.
- Decreased levels of papillomavirus globulin, rheumatic factor, and immunosuppressive supplements.
- Sjogren syndrome.
- Non – Hodgkin ‘s lymphoma.
- Breast enlargement in males.
Causes of C virus infection
The virus is transmitted through the infected blood to the proper, and the most important methods of transmission include:
- Blood transfusions that are not subject to health checks and standards.
- Substance abuse, and the use of contaminated injections.
- Exposure to blood contaminated with HIV, especially those working in the health sector.
- Sexual contact with people who carry the virus.
Treating the symptoms of C virus
Before starting treatment, the virus must be diagnosed in the liver by taking a sample of the liver tissue to determine the extent of fibrosis in the liver tissue, test the presence of the virus in the blood, and check the level of liver enzymes, if the infection is simple, the virus may not be subject to any treatment because most Treatments have a significant negative impact on humans, and most doctors prefer treatments that help to destroy the virus inside the liver, but there is not enough knowledge of these therapies to efficiently fight the virus. Interferon is one of the best treatments used but is not used in many cases because it is followed by severe side effects, such as: cold symptoms, low hemoglobin, leukocytes and platelets. The patient can suffer from extreme fatigue, frustration, Liver transplantation is one of the treatments used to treat hepatitis, but the numbers are higher than the number of donors.
Prevention of HIV infection
There is no vaccine yet for this virus, but these are some ways to prevent it:
- Non-sexual relations outside marriage.
- Do not use needles after being used by other people.
- Stay away from tattoos and drugs that contribute to the spread of the virus.
- Stay away from alcohol because it is harmful to the liver.
- Follow healthy lifestyles, such as eating healthy food, and exercising.