Hepatitis B is a viral infection of the liver. The liver becomes inflamed and tender. It may also become swollen. Areas of liver tissue may be destroyed by the inflammation. Hepatitis B is a serious, sometimes severe and even fatal type of hepatitis.
You may not have any symptoms of hepatitis until several weeks or months after you are infected with the virus. Or you may never have any obvious symptoms.
If you have symptoms, the illness usually begins with these flulike symptoms:
- Loss of appetite
- Fever
- General aching
- Tiredness.
Other early symptoms may include:
- Itching, sometimes with hives
- Painful joints
- Loss of taste for cigarettes if you are a smoker
After several days you may also have these symptoms:
- Nausea and vomiting
- Foul breath and bitter taste in the mouth
- Dark brown urine
- Yellowish skin and eyes (jaundice)
- Pain just below the ribs on your right side, especially if you press on that part of your abdomen
- Bowel movements that are whitish or light yellow and may be looser than normal.
Some people develop a chronic form of the disease without having any obvious symptoms, even though damage to the liver may be occurring. The symptoms of chronic hepatitis may be persistent fatigue, weakness, and loss of appetite, as well as some of the other symptoms listed above.
Also Known As:
Anti-HBc IgG/IgM Diff, Antibody to Hepatitis B Core Antigen IgG/IgM Diff, HBcAb, IgG/IgM Diff
Preparation:
No fasting required. Stop biotin consumption at least 72 hours prior to the collection.
Test Results:
2-3 days. May take longer based on weather, holiday or lab delays.
