Hepatitis C is spread by contact with the blood of an infected person or through infected syringes used by drug addicts, blood donation, organ transplants, dialysis. Tattooing and body piercing could be a source of infection. Mother-to-baby transmission during childbirth is possible. It is less commonly transmitted by sexual activity. Infection is not acquired through normal social contact.
Chronic Hepatitis C infection develops in 75%-85% of those acutely infected. For travellers one of the most common activities which results in Hepatitis C infection is receiving a blood transfusion that has not been screened for Hepatitis C virus; or where medical equipment has not been adequately disinfected or sterilized. Approximately 3% of the world's population has Hepatitis C. The prevalence rises to 15% in Africa, Asia and Egypt. With sensible precautions, however, the risk to most travellers is very low.
There is no vaccine for Hepatitis C. Currently, Hepatitis C is treated with a combination of two drugs: Interferon® Alpha plus Ribovirin®. Approximately 40% of those treated respond positively to the treatment.
Symptoms include: loss of appetite, abdominal pain, fatigue, nausea, dark urine and jaundice. People infected with Hepatitis C virus often show no symptoms initially, but if inflammation persists, long-term effects can damage the liver and may cause cancer.
In September 2005, a BBC news report said that the Hepatitis C Trust has called for new screening targets estimating 500,000 UK people carry the virus but only 1 in 7 have symptoms and are aware. Since September 1991, blood donations in the UK have been screened for Hepatitis C.
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