Unless it is in a severe form and with obvious symptoms there can be many ways in which people find out that they have hepatitis. Because there are sometimes so few specific symptoms beyond say, fatigue, it may only be diagnosed when blood tests are carried out, sometimes for unrelated reasons, i.e. prior to giving blood donations, medicals for insurance purposes, general health checks or following work related injuries. It can come as a very big shock that someone has hepatitis, or that there are signs of liver failure.
Signs and Symptoms of Acute Hepatitis
In its severe form symptoms of acute hepatitis can make the person feel extremely ill. Other people think they have flu. Signs and symptoms can include some or all of the following:
Signs and symptoms of Chronic Hepatitis
Although signs and symptoms may vary, many people are unaware that anything is wrong with them, others may have vague symptoms. These may include:
Unfortunately if chronic hepatitis is not cleared by the body or is not successfully treated and cured then liver disease or liver failure may result.
Signs and symptoms of Fulminant hepatitis
A severe but rare form of acute hepatitis it may begin with fatigue and nausea, but within a few weeks the signs and symptoms are pronounced and are as with acute hepatitis listed above. About 2 weeks after jaundice develops encephalopathy develops. Encephalopathy is a state of impaired or altered mental status. In its mild form there may be:
In its severe form fulminant hepatitis symptoms include:
Severe loss of memory i.e. not knowing the date, year, their name or address, confusion, inappropriate behavior, poor coordination, Asterixis- uncontrollable flapping of the hands, Fetor hepaticus- foul smelling breath and coma.
Up to 85% of people with this rare type of hepatitis will die without a liver transplant.
Diagnostic Tests for Hepatitis
Liver Function Tests
These tests show how well the liver is functioning but will not accurately assess the many and varied functions for which liver is responsible. Tests do check the level of liver enzymes, transaminases and cholestatic enzymes, bilirubin and liver protein levels. High levels of transaminases in the blood do not always reveal how badly the liver is inflamed or damaged. Elevated levels can also occur in genetic liver disease, liver tumors and heart failure. The normal ranges of AST and ALT transaminases are around 0 to 40 IU/L and 0 to 45 IU/L respectively.
Liver Proteins and hepatitis
Albumin, prothrombin, and immunoglobulins are checked and abnormal levels are indicative of severe liver disorder. Prothrombin times, because the liver produces many of the clotting factors required to stop bleeding needs to be determined.
Liver Biopsy for hepatitis
One of the main and most accurate diagnostic procedures that can determine what is wrong with the liver and how badly it has
been damaged. As most liver diseases affect the entire organ uniformly, the small sample obtained by biopsy, generally performed under a local anesthetic, will show any abnormalities.
Video Links for Hepatitis
Article Sources:
Palmer, Mellisa. Hepatitis Liver Disease. What you need to know. New York: Avery Publishing Group, 2000.
CDC Center for Disease Control,
WHO World Health Organization