Symptoms of hepatitis B infection
The hepatitis B virus does not have any cell-destroying (cytopathogenic) properties. It is the immune reaction that is directed against the liver cells affected by the virus and destroys them. The progression/symptoms of hepatitis B disease are unpredictable and can appear in all forms.
In 90% of patients with hepatitis B virus infection, spontaneous healing of the liver cell inflammation occurs without consequences. About two thirds of these patients show the clinical symptoms of acute viral hepatitis, the rest of the affected persons, especially children, pass through the disease without symptoms. These people thus represent a hidden source of infection and can infect others unnoticed.
The time between infection with hepatitis B and outbreak of the first symptoms (incubation period) can last from 2 weeks to 6 months. In acute viral hepatitis, the patient initially complains of unspecific general symptoms such as
- Tiredness
- Weariness,
- Loss of appetite
- Nausea
- Vomiting
- Headaches
- Muscle and joint complaints, if necessary
- Slight fever.
A feeling of pressure in the right upper abdomen can also be a symptom of hepatitis B. Both in the acute as well as in the chronic form.
The liver is localized in the right upper abdomen and lies there – at normal size – hidden under the costal arch. If the liver is enlarged, it can extend far below the costal arch. Hepatitis can lead to slight pain or a feeling of pressure in the liver area.
The symptom of a feeling of pressure in the right upper abdomen may be caused by an enlargement of the liver due to water retention in the liver (hepatic edema), and by the resulting tension in the organ capsules. This can be followed by jaundice (icterus) and its accompanying symptoms. Although jaundice is a typical symptom of acute hepatitis B, it occurs in only about 1/3 of infected people.
Billirubin (bile pigment) can no longer be excreted into the bile ducts by the affected liver cells (hepatocytes). As a rule, jaundice only occurs after flu-like symptoms such as aching limbs, listlessness, nausea and vomiting have already occurred. A typical complex of symptoms of jaundice develops.
This complex includes one: which are the most striking and obvious symptoms of jaundice. A tormenting itching due to deposited bile salts in the skin is particularly distressing for the patient. There are also symptoms such as clayey discoloration of the stool (acholia), due to the absence of the bile pigment in the stool and a darkening of the urine, as the kidney takes over the excretion of the bile pigment.
The lack of bile acids in the small intestine makes it harder to digest fats, which can lead to intolerance to fatty meals and to fatty stools (steatorrhea). The jaundice disappears completely after a few weeks.
- Yellow coloration of the skin and the
- Sclerae (the white of the eyes, sclera),
About 2/3 of all infected people notice the disease through various symptoms.
One of the typical symptoms is a significant reduction in performance. The patients feel permanently tired and exhausted. Everyday activities are more difficult than usual due to a significantly increased fatigue.
These symptoms persist for days to weeks during the acute infection and usually disappear completely. Fever is a symptom that can occur in numerous infectious diseases and also in inflammatory reactions of a non-infectious nature. It is therefore very unspecific and does not allow more precise or reliable conclusions to be drawn about the cause of the disease.
Fever can occur in the context of acute hepatitis B. In most cases this is a slight fever that rarely rises above 40°C. Pain in joints, limbs and muscles occurs in common infections such as a simple flu, but also in severe infectious diseases such as hepatitis B.
In the acute form of hepatitis B, joint, limb and muscle pain is a relatively common symptom. However, since the symptoms are very unspecific, they do not provide a reliable indication of the causative disease. The joint and muscle pain can also occur recurrently in chronic hepatitis B.
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