Most adults who get it have it for a short time and then get better. This is called acute hepatitis B. Sometimes the virus causes a long-term infection, called chronic hepatitis B. Over time, it can damage your liver. Babies and young children infected with the virus are more likely to get chronic hepatitis B. The etiological agent of hepatitis B infection, formerly known as serum hepatitis, is the hepatitis B virus, which is a Hepadnavirus that attacks the liver causing inflammation of the liver (4, 5).You can have hepatitis B and not know it. You may not have symptoms. If you do, they can make you feel like you have the flu. But as long as you have the virus, you can spread it to others. It's caused by the hepatitis B virus. It is spread through contact with the blood and body fluids of an infected person. You may get hepatitis B if you: Have sex with an infected person without using a condom. Share needles (used for injecting drugs) with an infected person. Get a tattoo or piercing with tools that weren't sterilized. Share personal items like razors ortoothbrushes with an infected person. MODE OF TRANSMISSION
The hepatitis B virus is a DNA virus belonging to
the Hepadnaviridae family of viruses. Hepatitis B virus is not related to the hepatitis A virus or the hepatitis C virus. Some people with hepatitis B never clear the virus and are chronically infected. Approximately 2 billion individuals in the world have evidence of past or present hepatitis B, and 2.2 million people in the U.S. are chronically infected with hepatitis B. Many of these people appear healthy but can spread the virus to others. Hepatitis B infection is transmitted through sexual contact, contact with contaminated blood (for example, through shared needles used for illicit, intravenous drugs), and from mother to child. Hepatitis B is not spread through food, water, or casual contact. Serologic (blood) markers specifically for hepatitis B virus are used to diagnose hepatitis B viral infection. The blood tests can also identify the stage of the infection (past or present) and people who are at highest risk for complications. Injury to the liver by hepatitis B virus is caused by the body's immune response as the body attempts to eliminate the virus. SIGNS AND SYMPTOMS Most people do not experience any symptoms during the acute infection phase. However, some people have acute illness with symptoms that last several weeks, including yellowing of the skin and eyes (jaundice), dark urine, extreme fatigue, nausea, vomiting and abdominal pain. A small subset of persons with acute hepatitis can develop acute liver failure which can lead to death. In some people, the hepatitis B virus can also cause a chronic liver infection that can later develop into cirrhosis of the liver or liver cancer. Abdominal Pain Dark Urine Fever Joint Pain Loss of Appetite Nausea and Vomiting Weakness and Fatiuge Who is at risk for chronic disease?
The likelihood that infection becomes chronic depends
upon the age at which a person becomes infected. Children less than 6 years of age who become infected with the hepatitis B virus are the most likely to develop chronic infections.
In infants and children:
80–90% of infants infected during the first year of life develop chronic infections; and 30–50% of children infected before the age of 6 years develop chronic infections. In adults: less than 5% of otherwise healthy persons who are infected as adults will develop chronic infection; and 20–30% of adults who are chronically infected will develop cirrhosis and/or liver cancer. DiagnosisIt is not possible, on clinical grounds, to differentiate hepatitis B from hepatitis caused by other viral agents and, hence, laboratory confirmation of the diagnosis is essential. A number of blood tests are available to diagnose and monitor people with hepatitis B. They can be used to distinguish acute and chronic infections.