2023-06-18 20:29:59
Recently, many citizens have traveled abroad or returned home to visit relatives, so be careful of the risk of hepatitis C infection! For example, when you get a tattoo or receive treatment during a trip, you may come into contact with needles or blood, and you may be infected with hepatitis C at any time without knowing it. Especially if you go to relatively backward places, stores may reuse needles or fail to adequately sterilize utensils, which may become a way of hepatitis C infection.
Gastroenterology and hepatology specialist Du Wanbin pointed out that hepatitis viruses are divided into types A, B, C and E, among which hepatitis B and C belong to chronic hepatitis. Blood and sexual contact, such as tattoos or unsafe sex. In addition, if you experience fish therapy while traveling, let small fish bite the dead skin on your feet, although it is more difficult to get injured, but if another person with a wound is in the same If you soak your feet in a water tank, you may be infected with hepatitis C virus.”
Night market tattoos are high-risk
Most of the local hepatitis C cases come from high-risk groups, such as drug addicts who share needles or have unsafe sex. “Tattooing is also a common route of hepatitis C infection, but the trend of tattooing in Hong Kong is becoming more and more popular, and the hygienic environment of many tattoo parlors has reached a certain level; but in developing countries, if you go to night markets or hotels and other unregulated places to get tattoos, there is a risk of infection. It is relatively higher.” Du Wanbin said. Therefore, regardless of daily life, travel or returning home, places and activities with high risk of hepatitis C infection should be avoided.
Acute hepatitis C may be asymptomatic
If acute hepatitis C develops due to infection, symptoms such as fatigue, nausea and vomiting may occur, and severe symptoms such as acute liver failure are less common; but more often, patients are asymptomatic and miss the opportunity for treatment, developing into chronic hepatitis C. Du Wanbin pointed out that chronic hepatitis C can progress to liver cirrhosis, leading to symptoms such as abdominal distension, loss of appetite and edema, or gastrointestinal bleeding and hepatic coma. Therefore, if you find that you have symptoms such as abnormal fatigue, nausea or vomiting, you should seek medical advice as soon as possible to diagnose whether you have hepatitis virus infection; as for those who are asymptomatic but have high-risk activities, you should also check early so as to detect and treat early hepatitis C and its complications.
cure in three months
In the past, there were few ways to treat hepatitis C, and interferon drugs had to be injected intravenously. The success rate was not high, and the side effects were relatively large. The current treatment method is to use oral antiviral drugs. The course of treatment is usually 8 to 12 weeks. There are no serious complications, and the treatment is simple and easy to accept. Du Wanbin said that after the treatment is completed, the hepatitis C virus in the body will be completely eliminated under normal circumstances. “However, hepatitis C virus is a family with six genotypes. Therefore, after successful treatment, you should also avoid contact with high-risk activities to avoid reinfection with other hepatitis C viruses.”
Watch out for drug conflicts
When receiving hepatitis C treatment, doctors must know whether the patient is taking other drugs. Du Wanbin pointed out that hepatitis C drugs can affect the metabolic rate of other drugs and disrupt the amount of drugs in the body. Some common drugs such as cholesterol-lowering, anti-coagulant and anti-epileptic drugs may interact with hepatitis C drugs, reducing drug efficacy or increasing side effects. “If the patient is taking cholesterol-lowering drugs or blood-thinning drugs, the doctor will consider switching to other three-high drugs, or temporarily suspending the drug. However, switching or stopping the drug may affect disease control, so the doctor will choose less drug-related drugs according to the situation. Hepatitis C drugs should be used.” Du Wanbin emphasized that doctors must explain to patients that the goal of hepatitis C treatment is to reduce the risk of long-term complications, so that patients understand the importance of taking hepatitis C drugs, and will not be resistant to switching drugs.
1687141404
#Beware #HCV #infection #traveling #home