Hepatitis A is caused by Hepatitis A virus and can affect persons of all ages, both males and females. It is also called jaundice in common language. As result of the infection, the liver becomes inflamed and the level of billirubin in the blood rises above normal (normal range being 0.1-1.0 mg%).Common Causes of Hepatitis A are bad personal hygiene, improper sanitation, incorrect medication, use of infected water, food or utensils, intimate contact with the infected person and using belongings of the infected person like towel, handkerchief, blades etc.
- The entire body including nails and sclera (whites of the eyes) becomes yellow. in fact every visible organ where the blood circulates becomes yellow. The only thing left out is the hair because there is no blood circulation in the them. The affected person looks bloodless. even the urine becomes dark yellow. This yellowish appearance of hepatitis is different to pale look due to anemia.
- In most cases the stool also becomes yellow.
- Loss of appetite
- Nausea and vomiting (not always)
- Diarrhea (not always)
- Lethargy due to general weakness
- Continued low fever (in most cases but not always)
- In certain cases the skin may not be very yellow but level of bilirubin in the blood may still be above normal. if other symptoms exist, it would be better to consult the doctor and have the blood tested.
Preventive measures for all types of hepatitis are nearly the same. some important measures are:
"Hepatitis A" yields much quicker than all other types and can be easily treated by any medical system. The affected person is generally advised to have complete bed rest and take plenty of liquids. "Hepatitis" A is not considered as dangerous as other types. The apparent symptoms usually clear off in about a week or so but a confirmatory test would be necessary to check whether level of bilirubin has dropped to within permissible limits or not. if it has not or is taking too long to drop, you might like to consider homeopathic treatment. in such condition, use of lot of liquids might no longer be fruitful. Proper medical treatment would be necessary otherwise the liver function might get seriously disturbed.