Hepatitis B is a virus that can cause chronic disease of the liver. It is passed from person to person through contact with contaminated blood or bodily fluids.
Not everyone with hepatitis B will show symptoms, and people can pass on the virus without realising it. Symptomatic sufferers generally show flu-like symptoms including loss of appetite, sore throat, tiredness and joint pains. Usually the body will naturally remove the virus in time, but if the virus is still within the body after 6 months, chronic hepatitis B can develop.
There is no specific treatment for acute hepatitis B, but antiviral treatments may be given to those with chronic hepatitis B to suppress the activity of the virus and delay the progression to serious complications.
A vaccine is available to help protect against hepatitis. Other methods of prevention include practising safer sex and not sharing needles.
