Thursday, June 23, 2011

What Should I Know About Hepatitis B?

Hepatitis B remains one of the terms of fear that occasionally hear health professionals use. Also hear about this somewhat mysterious disease in the media from time to time. But what is the hepatitis B and what we know about it?
Hepatitis B is a DNA virus that can be found in the blood. That attacks the liver. A name that may run across is HBV, which is short for Hepatitis B. Hepatitis means inflammation of the liver.
What is important to know when considering how HBV is spread is that, for all we know, is transmitted primarily through blood contact. To become infected, a little more specific can occur when blood from an infected person enters the body. Other body fluids may also contain HBV, but usually at lower concentrations. HBV can be received through the bite of an infected person. It is suspected that the sharing of toothbrushes or razors might allow the infection to be hired.
HBV is also sexually transmitted diseases. Traditional risk factors for other sexually transmitted diseases apply here as well. For example, promiscuous and homosexual behavior may increase the risk of infection.
People who are hemophiliacs are also at higher risk and living with people who have chronic HBV infection. Having a job that involves contact with blood can also put at greater risk for obvious reasons. Drug use is a risk factor.
Your body can fight off the infection of HBV. If this happens, you will be free of viruses and not with time, even a positive result for HBV surface antigen in the blood. The antigen is simply defined as a substance that causes the production of antibodies. And antibodies are proteins that are used by the body to get rid of antigen. You could have guessed that a blood test can show if a person with HBV infection.
The bodies of most people do not fight the infection completely and suffers from chronic hepatitis. The virus stays in the body long term. This type of person can infect others. Currently, an estimated 1.25 million people in the United States suffer from chronic hepatitis B.
A vaccine to prevent HBV infection and no medicine that can be used to fight infection. Interestingly, the vaccine can be useful after HBV infection is likely to help prevent the disease from developing. Consult your doctor for recommendations on the current HBV vaccination.
Often, infection with hepatitis B can happen without people realize they have it. Sometimes no symptoms. There may also be symptoms ranging from mild to severe. In the relatively rare occasions, infection with hepatitis B can cause death, although this occurs in a very small percentage of infected people.
This article is for informational purposes and is not intended to diagnose, treat or prevent any health condition. Seek advice from a qualified medical professional if you have or think you might have a health problem, including hepatitis B.
David Snape is the author of What You Should Know about Gum Disease - an important book considering that most adults have some form of gum disease. David also answers questions on any topic of fitness, health or medical practitioner in his blog: http://tobeinformed.com. David believes that oral irrigation to help fight gum disease and oral irrigation premiere in the market is the Hydro Floss oral irrigator

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