Conor Moldowan
Micro 5
Fall 2014
Robert Cattolica
Hepatitis C Virus Hepatitis is a word that describes an inflammation of the liver. According to Evelyn Strauss, who has a Ph.D. in biochemistry, this progresses to scarring of the liver tissue. The scarring of the liver tissue causes decreased functionality of the liver, cancer, and possibly death. Many people were afflicted with hepatitis in the past ("2000 Albert Lasker Award for Clinical Medical Research").
Additionally Evelyn Strauss says that in the 1970’s there was an epidemic of hepatitis occurring from blood donor transfusions. Researchers were able to assess whether hepatitis was occurring by measuring levels of amino-alanine transferase in the blood of donors. The reason they could
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They then took DNA and RNA from the infected blood of chimpanzees and put it into bacterial cells. The bacterial cells that made proteins that bound antibodies from infected blood but not from uninfected blood showed that only infected blood was making antibodies toward this protein. Researchers made sure that the protein was not of bacterial or human origin to prove that it is most likely a viral protein. In this way they found Hepatitis C. Researchers then tested all of the blood that was positive for hepatitis and not positive for Hepatitis A or B and found that almost all of it was positive for Hepatitis C. With this new way of testing in place, this has decreased the rates of Hepatitis C in the U.S. ("2000 Albert Lasker Award for Clinical Medical …show more content…
It is estimated that up to half a million people die from hepatitis C infections each year and about 140 million people are infected with Hepatitis C (Hepatitis C). Adding to this, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention states that since 2007, the total number of people in the U.S. who have died from Hepatitis C is greater than the number of people who have died from HIV. It is estimated in 2012 that 3.2 million in the U.S. had Hepatitis C. This is why Hepatitis C has made its mark as the number one most common blood-borne illness in the U.S. ("Surveillance for Viral Hepatitis – United States, 2012"). Since so many people in the U.S. have this disease, it is important to discuss how people acquire
The Hepatitis A Virus affects many different systems within the body. The first being the digestive system and the gastrointestinal system because Hepatitis A causes an acute liver infection. The liver’s job is to process nutrients, filter the blood and toxin from your body, and fight infections. It produces important blood components, proteins, and bile which helps you digest food. The liver also stores glucose and vitamins. The Hepatitis A Virus causes inflammation that interrupts the liver’s ability to perform these vital functions. Having a healthy liver is crucial to your health because it supports many other body systems. For example, one function of the liver is to produce bile which is needed to break down fats. The body stores bile in the gallbladder and then sends it to the beginning section of the small intestine. Bile is then combined with other digestive
Hepatitis B Virus (HBV) is a virus that attacks the liver. The virus is transmitted through blood and bodily fluids. This can occur through direct blood-to-blood contact, unprotected sex, use of contaminated needles, and from an effected mother to her newborn during the delivery process. The majority of people do not have noticeable symptoms when they are first infected with the HBV. People who do not know they are infected with the HBV, their body can respond in different ways. I learned that some of the common symptoms of Hepatitis B infection include fever, fatigue, muscle or joint pain, loss of appetite, mild nausea, vomiting, and dark-colored urine. Some of the serious symptoms that require immediate medical attention and maybe even hospitalization are: severe nausea and vomiting, yellow eyes and skin (jaundice), bloated or swollen stomach.
HAV is known to be an infectious disease that usually occurs in children and young adults .The disease is usually transmitted from person to person through contaminated food, liquids or oral fecal route. An example would be when someone is carrying the virus and doesn’t wash their hands after using the restroom and then puts food in their mouth. HAV is most common in developing countries because of the living conditions and inadequate water, poor sewage facilities and sanitary conditions. The highest HAV levels in the world are from India,” Earlier reports suggest that India is hyperendemic for HAV infection2,4-6 with very high infection rates,” (Sowmyanarayanan). Most HAV are without severe complications, “Virus HAV infection rarely causes fulminant hepatic failure in people…,” (Vento,p.1) . The symptoms for HAV are high fever, nausea, vomiting and jaundice...
Hepatitis B is a DNA viral infection that causes damage and inflammation to the liver. It was first discovered in 1965 by Dr. Baruch Blumberg. The HBV virus is very contagious and is even thought to be the most serious form of viral hepatitis and the most common viral infection on Earth. “HBV is 100 times more infectious than HIV.” (Green, 2002, pg. 7) The virus can survive for about one week outside the body on a dry surface. According to Green (2002, pg. 7), “One in twenty Americans has been infected with the virus at some point in their lives.” Between the ages of 15-39 is when 75% of new HBV infections occur, according to Green (2002, pg.8).
There are many different types of diseases that dental hygienist have to be aware of. It is important to know the basic information about the disease and how the disease affects the patient’s oral cavity as well as how to treat the patient. This paper will be addressing liver disease and more specifically, liver disease caused by hepatitis. “The term liver disease applies to many diseases and disorders that cause the liver to function improperly or stop functioning.” (U.S. National Library of Medicine. “Liver Disease.”) A couple signs and symptoms include fever, dark urine, abdominal pain and jaundice, which is the yellowing of the eyes and skin. (U.S. National Library of Medicine. “Liver Disease.”)
Liver disease resulting from alcohol affects more than two million Americans and is one of the primary causes of illness and death. The liver frees the body of harmful substances, such as alcohol. While the liver breaks down alcohol, it produces toxins that can be even more dangerous than the alcohol consumed (“Beyond Hangovers: Understanding Alcohol's Impact Your Health” 13). “These by-products damage liver cells, promote inflammation, and weaken the body’s natural defenses. Eventually, these problems can disrupt the body’s metabolism and impair the function of other organs” (“Beyond Hangovers: Understanding Alcohol's Impact Your Health” 13). A condition called steatosis is the result of fat build up in the liver and is the earliest stage of alcoholic liver disease. This condition causes the liver difficulty breaking down alcohol, potentially resulting in alcoholic hepatitis. Fibrosis of the liver, which is also related to heavy drinking, causes scar tissue to build up in the liver. The alcohol alters chemicals that the liver needs to break down this scar tissue, causing liver dysfunctions. If one does not refrain from drinking during the condition of fibrosis, the scar tissue can build up and create another condition, called cirrhosis. Cirrhosis is deterioration of the liver resulting from heavy scarring, causing the liver to not be able to function properly. If cirrhosis becomes severe, a liver transplant may be the only solution (“Beyond Hangovers: Understanding Alcohol's Impact Your Health” 14). It is difficult to calculate when a person would develop cirrhosis, because an alcoholic could never develop the disease, but someone who social drinks could. It is also unknown why cirrhosis is more prevalent in women (...
Hepatitis A is a usually short acting virus that occurs in humans and monkeys. It is caused by the Hepatovirus and the species is Hepatitis A Virus. There are two major ways in which Hepatitis A can be transmitted. One way is from person to person. This transmission occurs when the fecal matter of an infected person gets ingested by another person. Other ways Hepatitis A can be transmitted from person to person are through direct contact with an infected person, such as sexual contact, and sharing of needles for intravenous drug use. Hepatitis A can also be transmitted through coming in contact with contaminated food or water. Also foods that are uncooked or undercooked and have been contaminated with Hepatitis A can transmit the virus. (Bennett,
Hepatitis A is an acute infection of the liver that travels through your bloodstream and gastrointestinal tract (2). It is transmitted person to person through fecal contamination. Ingesting contaminated food and water is the main source, this usually occurs when an infected food handler prepares food without appropriate hand hygiene (3). Outbreaks are fairly common in institutions, prisons and military forces. An early infection of Hepatitis A can mimic the flu with symptoms such as being febrile, lethargy, nausea, anorexia, abdominal discomfort and eventually causing severe jaundice (1). This virus can progress and cause liver failure and even death if not treated promptly (3).
What is hepatic cirrhosis? According to the medical dictionary hepatic cirrhosis is when scar tissue replaces the liver’s healthy tissue. This disease changes the structure of the liver and blood vessels that nurture it. It reduces the liver’s capability to produce proteins and process hormones, nutrients, medications, and poisons. Cirrhosis is an illness that gets worse over time and possibly can become life threatening. This serious illness is ranked as the ninth leading cause of death in the U.S. It is the third most common cause of death for adults between 45 and 65 years of age. It occurs in more than fifty percent of undernourished chronic alcoholics. Unfortunately it kills about 35,000 people per year. In other country’s such as Africa and Asia death from cirrhosis is usually caused by hepatitis B.
There is a disease spreading out in the world called Hepatitis C. It affects the liver and may cause the liver to fail. This disease is caused by a virus called Hepatitis C virus which is also known as HCV. About 32,000 people are affected with this disease per year only in the United States area. Some It’s a disease with many symptoms and many causes. of these symptoms are easy bruising, upset stomach and fever. These are just some of the many symptoms that come from the virus. Hepatitis Cs nature of the causative agent is determined by many things. The biological data of this disease is filled so much information. It is estimated that over 180 million people have gotten Hepatitis C and it is growing.
HBV infection is complex and affects a large population worldwide. The discovery of the Australia antigen (HBsAg) in 1965 by Blumberg et al. (1965) set the stage for rapid progress in understanding and counteracting the disease (qtd in Zuckerman et al. 210). Liver function tests help in estimating the extent of damage caused to the liver during HBV infection. Diagnosis is done by detecting viral specific antigens in the serum. Both active and passive immunization options exist for disease prophylaxis. However, it is always best to practice caution over the parenteral, sexual and other routes of transmission of the disease for effective disease prevention and prophylaxis.
Liver is a vital organ and performs several roles; produce proteins that help the blood to clot and removing body wastes; regulates the supply of substances such as glucose throughout the body (Potter et al., 2012). To be able to perform these functions the liver cells must function normally. Alcohol abuse is usually connected to alcoholic liver disease that permanently damaged the liver due to excessive drinking and continued excessive drinking can shorten lifespan. If liver cirrhosis has not yet occurred, the liver can heal once the patient stop drinking alcohol (ABS, 2010).
The main causes of liver failure include hepatitis B, hepatitis C, long-term alcohol consumption, cirrhosis and malnutrition (WebMD, n.d.). It is crucial that the affected person applies for a liver transplant. A liver transplant is an operation in which the patient’s damaged liver is replaced with a healthy liver from a donor. There are three main types of liver transplant: orthotopic transplant, the most common type of transplant, where the patient’s liver is replaced by a liver from a deceased donor; living donor transplant, where a living person willingly donates his liver for the patient; and split type of liver transplant: where the liver of a deceased donor is split into the two lobes and given to two recipients, applicable if the patients are an adult and a child ( The United States alone performs around 6,000 transplants a year (American Liver Foundation, 2013), and has performed 592,589 to date since 1988, according to OTPN (Organ Procurement and Transplantation Network) statistics. Patients have an 86% chance and a 78% chance of living one and three years after a transplant.
Zein, N. N., & Edwards, K. (2009). The Cleveland Clinic guide to liver disorders. New York: Kaplan Pub.
Alcohol in the form of alcoholic beverages has been consumed by humans since pre-historic times, for a variety of hygiene dietary, medicinal, religions and recreational reasons. According to the NIH Senior Health, drinking too much alcohol affects many parts of the body. It can be especially harmful to the liver, the organ that metabolizes (breaks down) alcohol and other harmful substances. People who drink heavily for a long time can develop diseases such as liver inflammation (alcoholic hepatitis) or severe liver scarring (cirrhosis). Alcohol-related liver disease can cause death. According to the statistics in the year 2010 by the CDC (Centers for Disease Control and prevention) the number of discharges with chronic liver disease and cirrhosis as the first-listed diagnosis was 101,000 persons, while the number of deaths has been 31,903 persons.