Hepatitis B
Hepatitis means inflammation of the liver. Hepatitis B is passed on through blood and sexual fluids (semen (cum) or vaginal fluids), from a person with hepatitis B to a person who does not have hepatitis B.
Symptoms
Most people don't have any symptoms in the early stages. Some symptoms people may notice include:
- no appetite
- slight pains in the tummy
- nausea, vomiting
- jaundice (a condition where the whites of eyes and skin turn yellow)
- rash
- painful joints
- mild fever
- mild flu-like illness.
Most adults recover completely without medicine and can’t get hepatitis B again.
However, some people with hepatitis B will not get rid of the virus and will develop a chronic (or lifelong) infection. A person is diagnosed as having chronic hepatitis B if the virus remains in their blood for more than six months.
People with chronic hepatitis B often don’t feel sick, but can develop serious liver diseases, including liver failure and liver cancer, 20 or more years after first getting hepatitis B. People with chronic hepatitis B can pass it on to other people, even if they feel well and don’t have any symptoms.
Risk factors
Hepatitis B is mainly passed on through direct contact with blood that carries the hepatitis B virus. But it can also be passed on through contact with other body fluids like semen and vaginal fluids.
You can get hepatitis B:
- from contact with a tiny amount of blood, too small to see
- by having vaginal, oral or anal sex with a person with chronic hepatitis B if you don’t use a condom or dam
- unsterile tattooing or body piercing
- by sharing needles, syringes and other drug injecting equipment with a person with chronic hepatitis B
- during pregnancy and childbirth, from a pregnant person with chronic infection to baby.
Treatment
People with chronic hepatitis B should have their liver function monitored regularly (every 6-12 months) by their GP. If you have hepatitis B, it is important to talk about treatment options with your doctor. There is treatment available for chronic hepatitis B that can reduce liver damage.
Prevention
The best way to protect yourself against hepatitis B is to get immunised. You need three immunisations over six months (although the immunisations can sometimes be given over a shorter time). People who are at high risk of the virus, such as people who inject drugs, should be tested and immunised for hepatitis B.
Since 2000, every baby born in Australia can receive a free hepatitis B vaccine at birth and further doses at 2, 4 and 6 months of age.
Other ways you can reduce your risk:
- if you inject drugs, avoid sharing needles, syringes or any drug injecting equipment. Always use your own new, sterile needles and syringes and sterile water. Also use your own spoon, swabs, filters, and tourniquets. Wash your hands or wipe your fingers with a new alcohol swab before and after injecting yourself or another person. You can get needles and syringes from most chemists, needle and syringe exchanges, and at country hospitals after hours. Go to Healthy WA
- practice safer sex – use a condom or dam and lubricant.
- before considering any body art (such as tattooing or piercing) make sure the body artist uses only sterilised equipment, and new razors, inks, and needles each time.
- don’t share personal hygiene items, such as razors, combs, nail brushes, and toothbrushes as they can carry traces of blood.
For more information about hepatitis B, contact Hepatitis WA on (08) 9328 8538 Metro (1800 800 070 Country free call) or info@hepatitiswa.com.au or go to the Hepatitis WA website (external site).
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