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Illnesses

Hepatitis

Hepatitis
Reading Level
     edHelper's suggested reading level:   grades 5 to 7
     Flesch-Kincaid grade level:   9.7

Vocabulary
     challenging words:    cystic, fibrosis, hepatitis, overdose, unsanitary, tremendous, provided, acetaminophen, autoimmune, biopsy, flu-like, jaundice, providers, successful, ultrasound, effective
     content words:    Epstein Barr, United States

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Hepatitis
By Jennifer Kenny 		  
1     Hepatitis means inflammation of the liver. It can be a result of a liver injury from poison such as alcohol or drugs or it can be liver damage resulting from a problem with the liver's blood supply. Sometimes it's a result of an autoimmune disorder. It can be the result of injury. Some necessary medications for other conditions can cause damage so the doctor needs to monitor patients using their medications carefully. Inherited disorders such as cystic fibrosis can cause liver disease. An overdose of acetaminophen, which is very rare, can cause deadly liver problems. Finally, infections caused by parasites, bacteria, and viruses such as Epstein Barr virus or varicella can cause hepatitis. More often than not, though, hepatitis is caused by hepatitis A virus, hepatitis B virus, or hepatitis C virus.
 
2     How is hepatitis diagnosed? A doctor will do a physical exam to check for signs and symptoms. Then blood tests are an essential part of the official diagnosis. These would include identification of the hepatitis virus, liver function tests, and autoimmune blood markers. In addition, an abdominal ultrasound or liver biopsy might be helpful.
 
3     The most common form of hepatitis in children is hepatitis A. Sometimes it is referred to as infectious hepatitis. What causes it? The hepatitis A virus, of course, causes it. This particular virus lives in the stool of those who have hepatitis A. As a result, the virus later can be found on food, in diapers, on doorknobs, etc. Therefore, it spreads if someone eats something that has the virus in it or on it - contaminated food or water, especially in unsanitary conditions. Hepatitis A is usually a mild infection; in fact, many have had it but didn't even know it. Typically, the illness doesn't last too long, it doesn't cause chronic liver disease, and once it's gone it's not passed to others.

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