When you think about girl sex, the first thing that comes to mind is not usually your potential for risk or needing to practice safer sex. In some ways, that makes sense: unplanned pregnancies are not a concern when you’re a girl who’s enjoying sex with another girl, so traditional contraception geared toward planned conception […]
Hepatitis B Transmission, Symptoms & Diagnosis
Hepatitis B (hep B) is an infectious liver disease caused by the hep B virus (HBV). Effective vaccines can prevent HBV. The majority of reported acute HBV infections in the United States are among adolescents and young adults. Sexual contact is the most common means of transmission. Hepatitis B Prevalence Approximately 350 to 400 million people have […]
It’s Hepatitis Awareness Month 2013 – Awareness Months
Awareness Months – Hepatitis Hepatitis itself is not caused by sexual activity; the word ‘hepatitis’ means inflammation of the liver. However, hepatitis is often the result of one of several viruses, which is why it is commonly called viral hepatitis, and those viruses can be sexually transmitted. In the United States, the most common types […]
Similarities & Differences Between HIV & Hepatitis C (HCV)
HIV and the hepatitis C virus (HCV) share many of the same characteristics, but there are also some very distinct differences in the way they are transmitted, how long each virus lives outside of the body, disease progression, and treatment. This post explores some of the similarities and differences between HIV and HCV. RNA Viruses […]
Hepatitis Transmission Risk – Hep C – HCV
Hepatitis Transmission – Hep C: Hepatitis C is transmitted from blood-to-blood. This doesn’t mean just touching someone else’s blood. It means getting blood infected with the hep-C virus directly into your bloodstream. While there’s still a lot we don’t know about how hep-C infections happen, there are two important points to remember: You can’t get […]
Testing for Hepatitis C – Diagnostic & Evaluative Tests
Hepatitis testing is a two-stage process: first diagnosing the illness, and then evaluating liver damage and treatment prospects. The first stage tests, antibody screening and confirmation, tell you if you’ve been infected by hep-C, and whether the virus is still present and active. Once you know that you have hep-C, the tests in the evaluative […]
Signs, Symptoms & Disease Progression – Hepatitis C
Most people do not know they have hep-C. In fact, the virus was around for years before scientists even identified it. So, lots of people were infected before anyone knew the virus existed. Now there are ways to find out if you were exposed to and/or infected with hepatitis C. Hep C is a small […]
Tips for Living with Hepatitis C (HCV)
If you have hepatitis C (HCV or hep-C), taking care of yourself may be simple, or it may be complicated depending upon how sick you are, the symptoms you have, other problems you may have, etc. This is your basic care overview, but for more information, check the resources links at the bottom of this […]