{"id":16297,"date":"2023-08-10T21:04:00","date_gmt":"2023-08-10T21:04:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/agilusdiagnostics.com\/blogs\/all-you-need-to-know-about-hepatitis-a\/"},"modified":"2026-02-04T05:36:07","modified_gmt":"2026-02-04T05:36:07","slug":"all-you-need-to-know-about-hepatitis-a","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/agilusdiagnostics.com\/blogs\/all-you-need-to-know-about-hepatitis-a\/","title":{"rendered":"All You Need to Know About Hepatitis A"},"content":{"rendered":"<h2><strong>What is hepatitis A?<\/strong><\/h2>\n<p style=\"color: black;\">The hepatitis A virus (HAV) is what causes the vaccine-preventable liver disease known as hepatitis A. It can be discovered in an infected person&apos;s blood and stool. Hepatitis A spreads quickly. When a person comes into close touch with an infected individual or consumes contaminated food or drink, they may unwittingly consume the virus, even in minute quantities.<\/p>\n<p style=\"color: black;\">Hepatitis A symptoms, which include exhaustion, nausea, stomach discomfort, and jaundice, can last up to 2 months. Majority of hepatitis A patients do not have chronic sickness. Getting vaccinated is the most effective strategy to ward off hepatitis A.<\/p>\n<h2><strong>What causes hepatitis A?<\/strong><\/h2>\n<p style=\"color: black;\">The virus most frequently spreads when you consume food or liquids that have even minute amounts of contamination in them. It cannot be spread by coughing or sneezing.<\/p>\n<p style=\"color: black;\"><strong>Hepatitis A causes are:<\/strong><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Consuming food that had come in contact with an infected person who hadn&rsquo;t properly washed their hands after using the restroom<\/li>\n<li>Consuming contaminated water<\/li>\n<li>Consuming raw shellfish from sewage-contaminated water<\/li>\n<li>Being in close proximity to an infected individual, even if they show no symptoms or signs of the infection<\/li>\n<li>Having sexual relations with an infected person\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h2><strong>What are the symptoms of hepatitis A?<\/strong><\/h2>\n<p style=\"color: black;\"><strong>Hepatitis A symptoms<\/strong> and signs often don&apos;t develop until a few weeks after contracting the infection. However, not everyone who has hepatitis A experiences them. If you do, some possible hepatitis symptoms and indicators include:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Fatigue<\/li>\n<li>Suddenly feeling sick and vomiting<\/li>\n<li>Reduced appetite<\/li>\n<li>Abdominal soreness or agony<\/li>\n<li>Diarrhea<\/li>\n<li>Minor fever<\/li>\n<li>Bowel motions that have clay colour<\/li>\n<li>Dark urine<\/li>\n<li>Aching joints<\/li>\n<li>Jaundice<\/li>\n<li>Itching\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h2><strong>How is hepatitis A diagnosed?<\/strong><\/h2>\n<p style=\"color: black;\">A doctor can determine if you have hepatitis A by asking you about your symptoms and performing a blood test to see if you&apos;ve recently been exposed to the hepatitis A virus.<\/p>\n<p style=\"color: black;\">Hepatitis A cases cannot be distinguished from other acute viral hepatitis cases clinically. The identification of HAV-specific immunoglobulin M (IgM) antibodies in the blood allows for a precise diagnosis. Reverse transcriptase polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) assayis another sensitive diagnostic method to identify the hepatitis A virus RNA.<\/p>\n<h2><strong>What are the treatments for hepatitis A?<\/strong><\/h2>\n<p style=\"color: black;\"><strong>Hepatitis A treatment<\/strong> is not specific. The patient recovers on their own in a month or two. Prescriptions that are not necessary should be avoided. Avoid using acetaminophen, paracetamol, and anti-vomiting medications. Avoiding dehydration and taking adequate rest is usually enough for recovery.<\/p>\n<p style=\"color: black;\">A few do&rsquo;s and don&rsquo;ts can help one recover faster from the infection.<\/p>\n<p style=\"color: black;\"><strong>Take adequate nutrition and stay hydrated<\/strong>&#8211; It may be difficult to eat due to occasional nausea associated with hepatitis A. Snacking throughout the day could be more convenient than eating three meals. Increase your intake of high-calorie foods and switch from water to milk or fruit juice to ensure you&apos;re getting enough nutrients. Fluids will also help keep you hydrated, if you have been vomiting.<\/p>\n<p style=\"color: black;\"><strong>Skip alcohol<\/strong>&#8211; When you have the virus, your liver has a tough time processing alcohol and prescription drugs. Additionally, drinking might worsen liver disease. Any medications you take, including over-the-counter medicines, should be disclosed to your doctor as they may also harm your liver.<\/p>\n<p style=\"color: black;\"><strong>Maintain proper hygiene<\/strong>&#8211; Wash your hands thoroughly frequently, particularly after using the restroom or changing a diaper and before preparing or eating food to avoid the spread of the infection.<\/p>\n<h2><strong>Who should get the hepatitis A vaccine?<\/strong><\/h2>\n<p style=\"color: black;\">In healthy adults, the <strong>hepatitis A<\/strong> <strong>vaccine<\/strong> is around 95% effective and can last for more than 20 years. It can last 15 to 20 years and is 85% effective in children.<\/p>\n<p style=\"color: black;\">Some persons, according to experts, should get vaccinated like:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Travelers to nations where there are increased cases of hepatitis A<\/li>\n<li>Age group 13 to 23 months<\/li>\n<li>Children and teenagers aged 2 to 18 who have never had a vaccination<\/li>\n<li>Families adopting children from nations where the virus is widespread<\/li>\n<li>Those who struggle with blood clotting<\/li>\n<li>People who take recreational drugs<\/li>\n<li>People who come into contact with an infected person directly<\/li>\n<li>Long-term liver disease patients<\/li>\n<li>Anyone else who desires to avoid contracting the virus<\/li>\n<li>Men who have sex with other men<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p style=\"color: black;\">Hepatitis A vaccination requires two shots spaced out by six months. Hepatitis A and B combined vaccines require three doses spaced out over a six-month period. You can check the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.srlworld.com\/test\/mumbai\/100000185\/hepatitis-a-igm-serum\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">hepatitis A vaccine price<\/a> at Agilus Diagnostics to get the best deal.<\/p>\n<p>Typically, the hepatitis A virus is not harmful. Nearly everyone who has it recovers. But since it can take some time to heal, you&apos;ll need to look after yourself in the interim. Taking good care of yourself in terms of rest, food, and exercise is sensible regardless of whether you have hepatitis A or not, even if the condition is rarely fatal.<\/p>\n<p style=\"color: black;\"><strong>Agilus Diagnostics, a subsidiary of Fortis Healthcare Limited<\/strong><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>The hepatitis A virus (HAV) is what causes the vaccine-preventable liver disease known as hepatitis A. It can be discovered in an infected person&apos;s blood and stool.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":16794,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[207],"tags":[526,527,528],"class_list":["post-16297","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-liver","tag-hepatitis-a","tag-hepatitis-a-cause","tag-hepatitis-a-symptoms"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/agilusdiagnostics.com\/blogs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/16297","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/agilusdiagnostics.com\/blogs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/agilusdiagnostics.com\/blogs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/agilusdiagnostics.com\/blogs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/agilusdiagnostics.com\/blogs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=16297"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/agilusdiagnostics.com\/blogs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/16297\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":16793,"href":"https:\/\/agilusdiagnostics.com\/blogs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/16297\/revisions\/16793"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/agilusdiagnostics.com\/blogs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/16794"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/agilusdiagnostics.com\/blogs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=16297"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/agilusdiagnostics.com\/blogs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=16297"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/agilusdiagnostics.com\/blogs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=16297"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}