Hepatitis C is a liver disease caused by the virus passing from an infected person to an uninfected person, usually through sharing blood. This often occurs when needles are shared, though it can also be passed from a mother to her fetus. The disease can be treated, but it cannot be cured. Moreover, if left untreated, hepatitis C can become a chronic infection that leads to severe problems. Significant symptoms of hepatitis C can include:
1. Fatigue
Fatigue is a common symptom of chronic illnesses, especially in those with liver disease. As such, patients with hepatitis C often report a loss of physical energy, followed by lower activity levels.
2. Sore Muscles
It has been observed that patients with hepatitis C who had fibromyalgia symptoms—including pain and stiffness in the muscles and a mild fever—were more likely to report chronic hepatitis C than those who did not.
3 . Joint Pain
Inflammation of the joints, especially when it is caused by the immune system attacking the joints, is known as arthritis. Such inflammation can cause pain, redness, and stiffness in the joints that can affect the patient’s ability to move.
4. Fever
Fever has been observed in 90% of hepatitis C patients. This can be caused by liver damage, inflammation, or infection caused by hepatitis C that results in hemolytic anemia—the destruction of red blood cells. This causes the patient to feel very weak and dizzy. Fever usually occurs during the initial stages of hepatitis C and in patients who have had the disease for a long time.
5. Itchy skin
Many hepatitis C patients report itchy skin that covers the entire body, but is worse on the arms and legs. When the liver is damaged by hepatitis C, it often cannot remove toxins from one’s blood, and they begin to erupt into the body tissues, causing itching. Some patients report worse itchiness during sleep and during the summertime. Patients also experience changes in their skin color and texture, usually due to skin irritation caused by itching.
6. Stomach pain
Hepatitis C patients commonly complain of stomach pain during the first five weeks after infection, during which the liver can be severely injured, causing the patient to feel very ill and weak. The pain usually worsens in the morning and is relieved by eating or drinking fluids. The pain is also reportedly worse after meals or drinking alcohol.
7. Nausea or Poor Appetite
Nausea or poor appetite can result from hepatitis C causing liver damage that obstructs the bile ducts. Patients usually have nausea and feel full after eating only a few bites. Often, as time goes by, appetite declines further, and patients eventually stop eating altogether. Loss of appetite can be an early symptom of liver disease. It usually appears during the first year following infection and lasts for more than a few weeks. It can result in malnutrition and weight loss, as well as weakness and jaundice if the patient is not treated.
8 . Dark Urine
The reason for dark urine as a symptom of hepatitis C is unknown, but it is believed to be caused by liver damage that results in an abnormal metabolism and an inhibition of the body’s ability to remove waste products from the blood.
When a patient experiences one of these symptoms but has no other symptoms of hepatitis C, they may be suffering from a mild form of the disease known as hepatitis C fatigue syndrome. Very little has been written about this form of hepatitis C, and it often goes unnoticed in patients. Unfortunately, there is little you can do to treat this condition that does not involve a liver transplant.
