Hepatitis C in Seniors: Symptoms, Testing and Treatment

What Are the Different Types of Hepatitis C?

There are two types of hepatitis C. Acute hepatitis C occurs when someone is first infected with the virus. They can either have a very mild illness with few or no symptoms, or a serious condition that could require hospitalization. Less than half of people who get hepatitis C are able to clear the virus in the first 6 months after infection without treatment.

Most people who get infected will develop chronic, or lifelong, hepatitis C. Left untreated, chronic hepatitis C can cause serious health problems including liver disease, liver failure, liver cancer, and even death. Chronic hepatitis C is a leading cause of liver cancer and the leading cause of liver transplants in the United States.

What Is Signs and Symptoms of Hepatitis C?

You can have hepatitis C even if you do not have any symptoms. Many people with the virus do not look or feel sick. If you do develop symptoms, you will usually notice them 2-12 weeks after infection. Signs can include:

• Dark urine or clay-colored stools.
• Feeling tired.
• Fever.
• Joint pain.
• Loss of appetite.
• Nausea, stomach pain, or throwing up.
• Yellow skin or eyes (jaundice).

People with chronic hepatitis C are usually asymptomatic, meaning they do not have symptoms, or they have general symptoms like chronic tiredness or depression. Yet even people without symptoms can spread the virus to others.

How Hepatitis C Spreads?

Hepatitis C is spread when blood from an infected person, even microscopic amounts, enters the body of someone who is not infected. Because of how it spreads, certain life circumstances, jobs, and behaviors can increase your risk. It is important to know that even people who have cleared or been cured of the virus can be re-infected.

There is no evidence that hepatitis C spreads through sharing eating utensils, hugging, kissing, holding hands, coughing, or sneezing. You can still go to work or other places even if you have hepatitis C because you cannot spread the virus during daily interactions.

What Causes Hepatitis C?

For older adults, risk can come from blood transfusions or medical procedures before screening for the virus became widespread, as well as from behaviors such as sharing needles or personal items that touch blood. People ages 20-39 years currently have the highest rates of acute hepatitis C, and 43% of cases with risk information were associated with using injection drugs. Anyone who may have been exposed should be tested.

What Are Screening, Testing, and Diagnosis?

Because hepatitis C usually has no symptoms, getting tested is the only way to know if you have the virus. CDC recommends hepatitis C testing for all adults, all pregnant women, and for anyone who may have been recently exposed. If you have been diagnosed with hepatitis C, see your doctor to begin treatment without delay.

The testing process begins when your doctor draws blood for an HCV antibody test, which shows whether you have ever been infected with the virus. If you test positive or reactive for HCV antibodies, you will automatically be tested for HCV ribonucleic acid (RNA). The results tell you whether you have an active infection. If you have an active infection, your doctor will diagnose you with hepatitis C and start treatment right away.

What Is Treatment and Recovery?

There is no vaccine available for hepatitis C. The American Association for the Study of Liver Diseases and the Infectious Diseases Society of America recommend treatment for all people with hepatitis C, except for pregnant women and children under 3. Most treatments involve 8-12 weeks of oral medication (pills). Treatment cures more than 95% of patients with hepatitis C, usually without side effects.

What to Expect Long-Term?

Most people can be cured of hepatitis C with timely treatment. If you do not get treatment, you can develop chronic liver disease even if you have no symptoms for years. Because testing is the only way to know if you have the virus, routine screening is especially important for older adults who may have been exposed decades ago.

What Are Frequently Asked Questions?

Is there a vaccine for hepatitis C? No. There is currently no vaccine available for hepatitis C.

Can hepatitis C be cured? Yes. Treatment cures more than 95% of patients with hepatitis C, usually with 8-12 weeks of oral medication and few side effects.

Should older adults be tested for hepatitis C? Yes. CDC recommends hepatitis C testing for all adults. Testing is the only way to know if you have the virus.

Can a person be cured and then infected again? Yes. Even people who have been cured can be re-infected, so prevention is still important.