I. How is the hepatitis B virus transmitted? How long is the incubation period?
1.Hepatitis B has the following transmission channels.
(1) transmission by transfusion of blood and blood products.
(2) transmission by injection, needling, cosmetology, tattooing.
(3) medical transmission, i.e., infection caused by unclean medical devices, such as surgery and dental instruments.
(4) Mother-to-child transmission: intrauterine infections, intrapartum infections, postpartum infections
(5) Transmission by close contact in daily life: sharing of dental instruments, mouthwash cups, towels, shared utensils, unclean street food establishments
(6) Sexual contact transmission: HBsAg positivity can be detected in body fluids including sweat, saliva, semen and vaginal secretions of hepatitis B patients.
(7) Blood-sucking arthropods: mosquitoes and bedbugs.
The incubation period of hepatitis B is about 30-180 days, with an average of 90 days.
Second, the clinical characteristics of hepatitis B
Its subtypes are mainly acute hepatitis B and chronic hepatitis B.
1.Acute hepatitis B
The onset of the disease is slow and often not accompanied by fever. It is divided into the following three stages.
(1) pre-jaundice: often manifested as loss of appetite, general weakness, aversion to greasy food, nausea, pain in the liver area and other symptoms.
(2) Jaundice stage: Self-perceived symptoms may be slightly improved. The sclera and skin appear yellowish. The liver may be enlarged with a feeling of fullness, accompanied by pressure pain and percussion pain. Some cases are accompanied by enlargement of the spleen.
(3) Recovery period: jaundice subsides and symptoms are reduced until they disappear. Some cases transform into chronic hepatitis. On the basis of HBV infection and then infected with HDV, called overlapping infection, easily transformed into heavy hepatitis, about 70% of the recovery into chronic.
2.Chronic hepatitis B
(1) chronic prolonged hepatitis: acute hepatitis prolonged for more than 6 months, recurrent fatigue, gastrointestinal symptoms, discomfort in the liver area, liver enlargement. Liver function tests show repeated or persistent elevation of serum transaminases. The disease can be prolonged and recurrent for several years. Healing is good, and a few turn into chronic active hepatitis.
(2) Chronic active hepatitis: The disease lasts for more than six months, with gastrointestinal symptoms such as anorexia, nausea, abdominal distension, and neurological symptoms such as weakness, depression, insomnia, and pain in the liver area. It may be accompanied by liver palms, spider hemorrhoids, capillary dilatation or liver disease face. Persistent abnormal liver function especially the change of plasma protein.
Third, the diagnosis of hepatitis B
The only diagnosis of hepatitis B can be confirmed when there are clinical manifestations of acute and chronic hepatitis and one of the serum HBsAg, HBeAg, HBcAg, HBV DNA, DNAP or anti-HBc IgM is positive. If anti-HBe or anti-HBc alone is positive, one of the above must be present to confirm the diagnosis. If anti-HBs alone is positive and the serum concentration is greater than 10 mIU/ml, hepatitis B can be basically excluded. In the absence of clinical manifestations, HBsAg positivity with or without other serum markers can be diagnosed as asymptomatic HBsAg carriers.
Fourth, the treatment of hepatitis B
At present, there is a lack of reliable and effective treatment drugs, the principle of treatment is adequate rest, nutritional support, supplemented by appropriate drugs, avoid alcohol, overwork and drugs that damage the liver. The focus of treatment varies by clinical type of hepatitis. Antiviral, hepatoprotective and symptomatic treatments can be used.
Chinese medicine has a unique advantage in the treatment of acute and chronic hepatitis, as long as the evidence is accurate, the treatment can achieve the desired effect.