Harm of hepatitis B

The article was professionally consulted with Specialist Doctor I Vo Thi Thuy Trang - Gastrointestinal Endoscopy - Department of Medical Examination & Internal Medicine - Vinmec Danang International General Hospital.

Cirrhosis, liver cancer and increased risk of death are among the harmful effects of hepatitis B. To avoid the consequences of hepatitis B on the health of themselves and those around them, patients need to have a healthy diet, have regular checkups and avoid unprotected sex.

Hepatitis B is a disease caused by the hepatitis B virus. The hepatitis B virus can be spread from person to person through blood, unprotected sex, and from mother to baby.
When the hepatitis B virus enters our body, it will be divided into 2 stages:
Acute phase: In the acute phase when newly exposed to the virus, our body will have an immune response to fight the virus. harmful agent. During this period, there may be manifestations such as fever, fatigue, loss of appetite, jaundice, nausea, abdominal pain, dark urine ... However, there are people who have no symptoms. If this stage is detected and treated early, it can be completely cured. Chronic phase: If the virus persists in the body for more than 6 months, it is called the chronic stage. During this stage, there may be symptoms similar to the acute phase, but it can also silently cause no symptoms. At this stage, if the virus is active, it needs to be treated with drugs, but if it exists in a hidden state, we can live with it. As such, hepatitis B sometimes has symptoms that are difficult to recognize early or do not manifest until it has caused significant damage to the liver. Silent developments make it difficult for patients to recognize for early follow-up treatment as well as take measures to prevent infection for family members.
Fortunately for us, there is a vaccine for hepatitis B. It is recommended to actively vaccinate against hepatitis B to avoid infection, especially those at high risk such as having a family member infected with the virus, or a spouse infected with the virus.

Because chronic hepatitis B is often silent, it can cause many dangerous complications to the body. So what are the effects of hepatitis B? Here are the effects that hepatitis B can cause to the body:
Acute liver failure In about 1% of cases, infection with the hepatitis B virus can progress to more serious problems. acute liver failure.
This case occurs when the immune system aggressively attacks the liver cells, causing damage to many liver cells. The reason is that the hepatitis B virus replicates in liver cells, so there is a mistaken attack. This causes serious consequences with symptoms such as:
Severe jaundice, dark urine. Causing hepatic encephalopathy: coma, confusion... Abdominal distension, edema much. In the case of hepatitis B virus that causes acute liver failure, if not treated quickly, it can lead to liver failure, a high risk of death, especially in hepatic encephalopathy due to accumulation of toxins that cause liver damage. damage to the central nervous system is very dangerous.
Impaired liver function Impaired liver function is one of the consequences of hepatitis B. The reason is that the destruction of liver cells in large quantities will reduce the functioning of the liver. Impaired important functions of the liver such as synthesis, metabolism, detoxification, energy storage function...
Cirrhosis According to research, about 20% of people with chronic hepatitis B develop in Long-term risk of progression to cirrhosis. Cirrhosis will seriously affect health, weakening the immune system... However, because the liver has the ability to regenerate and compensate very well, it usually does not cause many noticeable symptoms until the ability to recover. Compensatory capacity is reduced and liver damage occurs on a large scale, there will be manifestations such as:
Fatigue; Anorexia, fear of fat, slow digestion, loss of appetite; Weight loss; Itchy skin, jaundice, yellow eyes; Dark urine; Pain in the right lower quadrant, abdominal distension; Swollen, heavy eyelids; Severe cases can cause other manifestations such as collateral circulation, gastrointestinal bleeding, skin bleeding, confusion... If detected early, treatment can help relieve symptoms and slow down the process. disease progression.
Liver cancer Each year, it is estimated that about 5% of people with hepatitis B will develop liver cancer, often liver cancer or cirrhosis. Especially in untreated cases, the risk of liver cancer is about 20 times greater in healthy people than in healthy people. This is a dangerous disease that progresses quickly and has a very high risk of death, so this is a very dangerous effect of hepatitis B.

To avoid the consequences of hepatitis B on your health or those around you, you should pay attention to the following:
Prevent infection by: Avoid having unprotected sex if you unvaccinated sex with hepatitis B. Unless it is certain that the patient's sexual partner has been vaccinated against hepatitis B; Do not share needles and syringes; do not share toothbrushes or razors... Healthy diet: Limit liver-damaging foods such as alcoholic beverages, fatty foods... Eat a lot of fruits and vegetables , drink lots of water... Eating right helps slow down the progression of viral hepatitis. During pregnancy, if you are infected with hepatitis B, you need to consult your doctor to avoid the risk of the disease spreading or spreading to your baby during childbirth. Routine visit: This is very important to know the progress of the disease. Especially people with hidden chronic hepatitis B who do not need to take medication, need to see a doctor about every 6 months. Vietnam has a relatively high incidence of viral hepatitis, which can cause serious consequences if not detected and treated. Hepatitis B sometimes has very subtle signs or sometimes no symptoms leading to late detection. Therefore, regular health check-ups are very important to detect diseases in time.