Hepatitis B virus can cause an infection either in the form of a short, acute illness or a chronic, long-lasting condition that affects the liver. Hepatitis B can cause serious disease in infants, so pregnant mothers who carry the virus must try to protect their babies by being screened and having their babies vaccinated after birth.
What Is Hepatitis B?
Hepatitis B virus is an organism that infects the liver, causing either a short, acute illness or a chronic, long-lasting disease. A baby who gets infected with the virus may experience a mild condition with no symptoms, but most babies become chronic carriers of the virus and pass them to others. What's worse is that one out of four carriers of the virus eventually develop serious liver disease later in life, such as cancer or liver failure. It is important to remember, however, that protection from this disease may be provided in most (95%) of cases by getting immunized with a vaccine.
Young children, including infants usually have no symptoms of infection with Hepatitis B. However, in 70% of older children, acute hepatitis B infection causes symptoms such as:
Fever
Tiredness
Loss of appetite
Joint pains, muscle aches
Stomach aches
Nausea and vomiting
Diarrhea
Dark urine
Yellowing of eyes and skin
Affected children usually show these symptoms 3 to 4 months after initial infection.
The virus spreads by direct contact with infected bodily fluids, such as blood, sliva, vaginal fluids, semen and breast milk. This is why babies of mothers who have been infected with hepatitis-b are at great risk of getting infected at birth.
What Are the Benefits of the Hepatitis B Vaccine?
Just like other vaccines, the hepatitis B vaccine protects children against the virus, which causes dis...
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...d be vaccinated one month after birth or after they are discharged from the nursery. Furthermore, sick children must wait for full recovery before getting their shot so they can tolerate the side effects of the vaccine.
If you want to know more about the hepatitis B vaccine, you can watch the video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xbQui8wLaMg
Summary
Hepatitis B causes an infection that affects the liver and can cause serious disease in infants. Pregnant women must be screened for the virus and must try to protect their babies by having them vaccinated after birth.
Works Cited
http://www.cdc.gov/vaccines/vpd-vac/hepb/fs-parents.html http://www.cyh.com/healthtopics/healthtopicdetails.aspx?p=438&np=465&id=2799 http://www.babycenter.com/0_the-hepatitis-b-vaccine_1561.bc?showAll=true
http://www.birth.com.au/hepatitis-b/side-effects-of-hep-b-vaccine?p=1#.UzuEjz-Sz9g
Vaccines should be put in children when are born to prevent any diseases when they are
HSV-1 is spread through saliva and direct contact, such as kissing, sharing eating utensils, sharing drinks or sharing personal items. Children often contract the virus from kissing their parents and coming in contact with other children. HSV-2 is spread through sexual intercourse. HSV must be transported through bodily fluids (saliva, pus, semen, vaginal fluid) to infect cells.3 The virus is transmitted through the mucosal linings of the body or through an open wound and has an incubation period of 2-12 days.4
The article’s information is presented with the goal of informing a reader on vaccines. The evidence is statistical and unbiased, showing data on both side effects and disease prevention, providing rates of death and serious illness from both sides. This evidence is sourced from a variety of medical organizations and seems reliable, logical, and easily understood, no language that would inspire an emotional response is used. The validity of studies is not mentioned in the article, but it does encourage readers to investigate further to help make a decision. The article allows a reader to analyze the presented evidence and come to their own
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.
Hepatitis B is a bacterial infection that displays symptoms like a visible rash on the surface of the skin, headache, abdominal pain, fatigue, anorexia, chills, severe liver damage, and can even lead to death. It can be contracted through close contact, especially sexual contact, through lesions on the skin from an infected person (Leu). Another required vaccination is Tdap. “It usually enters the body through the mouth and begins its replication in the throat and gastrointestinal tract. It moves to the bloodstream and continues to replicate and destroy motor neurons in the central nervous system. These are the motor neurons responsible for control of the muscles for swallowing, circulation, respiration and movement of the trunk, arms and legs” (Furnari). The last required vaccination is Hib. Symptoms for Hib include asthma, upper respiratory tract infections, lung disease, recurrent bronchitis, and death. Each of these vaccinations are required by schools to ensure the health of their
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).
The idea behind vaccines is to provide the body with just enough of the disease-causing substance to trick the body into producing antibodies against it. By injecting weak or dead infectious agents through the skin, it’s believed that the body will create the appropriate immune defense. Infants come into the world with antibodies they have gotten from their mother through the placenta. Infants who are breastfed continue to receive many important antibodies in the colostrum (the thick, yellowish premilk that is secreted during the first few days after a woman gives birth) and breast milk. During the first year of life, the immunity an infant gets from its mother at birth wears off. To help boost the fading ability to fight certain diseases, vaccines are given. Once the antibodies are produced, they stay around, protecting the child against the disease they were designed to fight.
An estimated 242,251 Canadians, and 150 million people worldwide are chronically infected with the hepatitis C virus, and more than 350 000 people die every year from hepatitis C-related liver diseases.1 Hepatitis C can lead to other serious diseases, such as liver failure, death, etc. But without any vaccines available to prevent the contraction of the disease, it may be hard to avoid. Due to disease generally being asymptomatic many people are unaware that they have it, further spreading the disease because of a lack of prevention mechanisms. Hepatitis C when developed chronically can cause serious affects on the liver, which may even lead to death. With hepatitis C being such a serious disease, it is important that more people be tested for it so they can start treatment in the early stages of the disease, as well as be aware and informed, before it becomes a chronic infection leading to serious complications.
Hepatitis A is a virus or an infection that causes liver disease and inflammation of the liver. According to Centers for Disease and Prevention, hepatitis A is a self- limited disease that does not cause a chronic infection and it is rarely fatal. The virus is an infectious disease of the liver which cannot be transmitted by sneezing and coughing. It is usually transmitted from person to person through the feces or the mouth, from consuming contaminated food or water. Many people do not experience any symptoms of hepatitis A, but if someone was to get it, then the symptoms could last from 2 weeks to 6 weeks. The blood is tested to determine how the liver is functioning. The blood is usually taken from the vein in the arm and
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).
...ons of HBV and HCV end up with cirrhosis which develops to hepatocellular carcinoma therefore they should be vaccinated (LeMone et al, p719).
Hepatitis B, an infectious disease caused by the Hepatitis B virus (HBV, a DNA virus), was formerly called serum hepatitis, inoculation hepatitis and post-transfusion hepatitis. Infection with HBV may result in acute, fulminant or chronic hepatitis, sometimes even resulting in a chronic asymptomatic carrier state, apart from hepatocellular carcinoma and liver cirrhosis (Davis 179). The disease is transmitted when an individual comes in contact with infected blood or objects. It may also be transferred from an infected mother to her infant either during or after birth (Zuckerman et al. 211). Transmission may also occur by accidental inoculation from infected needles and hospital equipment, intravenous drug abuse, body piercing, tattooing, and mouth-mouth kissing (Zuckerman et al. 210). The risk of Hepatitis B is particularly high in individuals with multiple sex partners, and in homosexuals. The HBV virus occurs in morphologically different forms in the serum of infected individuals. HBV infection has an incubation period of about 75 days. Systemic symptoms of the disease include fatigue, fever, dyspepsia, arthralgia, malaise, and rash, while local symptoms include hepatomegaly, jaundice, dark urine, and pale stools (Davis 179; Zuckerman et al. 210).
When a child is born, the doctors start a regular vaccination schedule to keep them up to date. One thing that parents should be aware of is that before a child is two years old the blood cerebral barrier will still allow foreign proteins to directly enter into the brain where they might cause possible damage (Rau). If a child is sick then it’s best to wait until the child feels better before giving them a vaccine....
(Jane C Finlay, Noni E MacDonald, 2001). Working with Vaccine -hesitant parents. Canadian Paediatric Society. Retrieved May 3, 2013, from http://www.cps.ca