If you, or someone you love, has recently been diagnosed with hepatitis C, it can feel very frightening. It is incredibly helpful to learn about the condition and understand where it came from, how it may affect someone with it, and what sorts of treatment options are available from digestive specialists.
The first thing to know is that it is a contagious disease, a virus, and for you to contract it you have to come into contact with blood or body fluids from someone who also has been infected with it. This is why it is a common issue with intravenous drug users who share needles with others. However, the American Liver Foundation also explains that people also get it if equipment to inject drugs is contaminated (such as a healthcare setting). There is even a low risk of it being sexually transmitted, and if there is a breakdown in the lining of the mouth (meaning it is not advisable to share tooth brushes), and there are some instances of it being transmitted via nail clippers and razor blades.
The good news is that it is not caught by kissing, holding hands, casual contact, sneezing, coughing, sharing foods, and breastfeeding.
Of course, you might wonder why it is digestive specialists who are going to provide treatment. The answer is simple, hepatitis C typically affects the liver, and because this is part of the digestive system (producing bile needed to breakdown foods), it is digestive specialists who are among the most common providers of diagnosis and treatment.
Keep in mind that Hepatitis C can have no symptoms and you may live with it for years without being aware you have it. When there are mild symptoms, a PCP may detect it, but it is always advisable for specialists to do treatment. The treatment options depend on the status of the condition. Most patients are cured of it with direct-acting antiviral drugs, but new drugs appear all of the time and physicians have many ways to address the situation.
If you have been diagnosed with a Hepatitis C infection and wish to find skilled digestive specialists in your part of Florida, get in touch with Digestive Disease Consultants in Jacksonville. Offering a full array of treatment options, they can help you with your Hepatitis C diagnosis or symptoms and get you on an effective treatment protocol.
