Acute hepatitis is inflammation of the liver that can be caused by viral or non-viral factors. Symptoms include malaise, jaundice, and fatigue. Treatment is supportive, but in severe cases, liver failure can occur, requiring an organ transplant.
Acute hepatitis is inflammation of the liver that lasts less than six months and often has a sudden onset. This type of hepatitis is most often caused by infection with the hepatitis A virus, but can also occur due to infection with the hepatitis B, C, D, or E viruses. Other viruses that infect the liver, such as yellow fever virus and Epstein-Barr virus do not usually cause acute hepatitis. Non-viral causes of this type of hepatitis include bacterial or amoebic infection, drug overdose, abnormal reaction to drugs, and alcohol poisoning.
Hepatitis and other causes of liver inflammation can damage the liver in two different ways. The first is direct damage caused by liver cell infection or the toxic effects of drugs or medications. The second mechanism of liver injury occurs when hepatitis is the result of an infection and is mediated by the inflammatory response of the immune system to the infection. In the immune response to infection, inflammation plays a key role by recruiting infection-fighting immune cells to the site of infection, but this same inflammation is also sometimes responsible for temporary or permanent liver damage.
Common symptoms of the early stages of acute hepatitis include malaise, muscle and joint pain, rash, fever, nausea, decreased appetite, diarrhea, and headache. It is also common to experience pain just below the ribs on the right side of the body. As the disease progresses, many of these initial symptoms subside somewhat and are usually replaced by the appearance of jaundice, or yellowing skin and dark-colored urine. After the jaundice has subsided, the patient is said to be on the mend, and will maintain a feeling of intense fatigue and tiredness during this time that may last for several weeks.
Treatment for acute hepatitis is usually supportive in nature, because there is no specific treatment that can cure this liver disease. In the case of acute viral hepatitis, for example, treatment might include antiviral drugs and perhaps antiemetic drugs to control nausea and vomiting. If a patient becomes severely dehydrated, he might be admitted to the hospital for rehydration with intravenous fluids.
In a small percentage of people, acute hepatitis can progress to liver failure. This can occur if the liver becomes permanently damaged due to inflammation. In the event of liver failure, complications such as hepatic encephalopathy can arise, in which the brain is affected by a buildup of toxins in the bloodstream. Liver failure can become life-threatening, and someone with liver failure may eventually require an organ transplant.
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