There’s little doubting the tremendous impact HIV drug therapy has had on the lives and futures, of HIV-positive people. Unfortunately, the life-extending benefits of HIV drug treatment have opened up a new set of problems for many HIV-positive people. Thousands of HIV-positive people in the U.S. are also infected – or at risk of being infected – with one of several hepatitis viruses.
Viral hepatitis, which can cause long-term liver problems, liver failure and liver cancer, is considered to be a leading cause of death among HIV-positive people. You can get some forms of viral hepatitis the same way you get HIV – through unprotected sexual contact and injection drug use. Hepatitis B and Hepatitis C are common forms of hepatitis among people who are at risk for, or living with, HIV/AIDS. When someone is infected with both HIV and hepatitis B or C, we say that they are coinfected.
Another common form of hepatitis – Hepatitis A – is an acute liver disease, which is spread through contaminated food, water or contact with the feces of an infected person. HAV does not lead to chronic infection in the way that hepatitis B and C do, but it can cause serious illness that can last for months.
All HIV-positive patients should be screened for viral hepatitis (A, B and C). Those who test positive for hepatitis B and C should seek care from a liver specialist (hepatologist or gastroenterologist) for further evaluation and management. This is because many HIV-positive people are now at a much lower risk of dying from AIDS-related opportunistic infections, but must now face the challenge of having to manage these other viral diseases that pose a threat to their health and lives.
In short, if coinfected, HIV-positive people must fight two infections at once – they must now face the challenge of having to manage these other viral diseases that pose a threat to their health and lives.
Listed below are points to better understand these three hepatitis viruses that are a potential threat to HIV-infected people and their health. Each of the following points discuss the ways these hepatitis viruses are transmitted, cause disease, and are treated, particularly in people living with HIV:
Hepatitis A
- Transmitted through contaminated food, water and feces.
- There is no chronic infection (no long-term liver damage).
- Once you have been infected with hepatitis A, you cannot get it again.
- Good personal hygiene and proper sanitation can help prevent hepatitis A.
- A safe vaccine is available for children 12 months and older, as well as teens and adults.
Hepatitis B
- Transmitted through infected blood, sex, needles and from infected women to their newborns.
- Chronic infections occur in 90% of infants, 30% young children, and 10% in adults.
- Hepatitis B is the leading cause of primary liver cancer worldwide.
- There are promising treatments for chronic HBV, but still no cure.
- A safe vaccine is available for newborns, children, teens and adults.
Hepatitis C
- Transmitted through infected blood, sex and needles.
- Chronic infections occur in 55 – 85% of infected individuals.
- HCV is the leading indication for liver transplants in the U.S.
- There are promising treatments for chronic HCV, but still no cure.
- There is no vaccine to prevent hepatitis C.
