Senior Citizens at High Risk of Hepatitis C: What You Must Know

It is clear as you get older the risk of becoming sick from various diseases goes up. Plenty of elderly has already some type of illnesses¹. 

Rates of Hepatitis C have been increasing at an alarming rate amongst seniors. Over 75% of senior citizens have it.  

Hepatitis C – What Is It?

HCV or Hepatitis C virus attacks the liver and its main mode of transmission is blood transfusion. Why the millennial community is at high risk of Hep C? In the 1960s and 1980s, screenings were not advance and prevalent. The people who underwent any medical procedures or blood transfusion might be infected with the virus and they are unaware of it².

Chronic inflammation, the result of hepatitis C, intensifies the illnesses related to age. Unfortunately, the elderly are at risk for these illnesses already. According to research, long-term HCV makes the carrier prone to:

• Liver cancers
• Bile duct cancer
• Anal cancer
• Pancreatic cancer
• Nonmelanoma nonepithelial skin cancer
• Diffuse large B-cell lymphoma
• Diabetes
• Kidney disease
• Cardiovascular disease
• Neuropsychological and neurocognitive impairment

Hepatitis C – Signs and Symptoms

The carrier may not always show any symptoms³. Moreover, the virus might reside in the body for a long time and go away. If any carrier shows any symptoms, they could be:

• Fatigue
• Sore muscles
• Joint pain
• Fever
• Digestive distress
• Itchy skin
• Dark yellow or brownish urine
• Jaundice

However, the people who bind with the illness develop a continuing form of Hep C that can lead to the damaged liver which ends in cirrhosis. Patients with cirrhosis may experience:

• Tiredness
• Weight loss
• Abdominal pain and nausea
• Extreme itching
• Severe jaundice
• Brain fog
• Fluid in the abdomen

Often tiredness, weight loss, or difficulty thinking are attributed to advancing age but these could be linked to hepatitis C⁴. More severe symptoms show that the patient’s liver is deteriorating.

What is the most appropriate way to know if screening is required for Hepatitis C? The doctor will advise an antibody test to assure if you have been infected with the virus or not. Positive test results mean the patient needs more tests to identify if they are currently infected or not. A current hepatitis C infection can be identified through a liver enzyme test as well.

Hepatitis C – The Treatment

The elderly who were infected with the virus a long time ago may also suffer from other health risks⁵. Hence, the treatment should also report other problems instead of one disease.

Advancement on medical science has made it easier for experts to learn that treating cirrhosis can also decrease the blemishes on the liver which caused cirrhosis.

Treatments can reduce the disease or reverse the damage caused by the virus.

Some lifestyle changes can also enhance the quality of life and prohibit more liver damage⁶.

The Takeaway

Although you think that you are not infected or exposed to the virus, being part of the senior population makes it mandatory for you to get examined. You can improve the quality of life and a few more years to life for enjoying the golden period of life to the fullest.

1. https://www.verywellhealth.com/age-related-diseases-2223996

2.https://uihc.org/health-topics/ask-expert-why-should-baby-boomers-get-tested-hepatitis-c"

3.https://www.crystalrunhealthcare.com/articles/long-term-effects-of-an-untreated-hepatitis-c-infection

4.hhttps://www.everydayhealth.com/hs/hepatitis-c-living-well/mental-health-effects/

5.https://www.ecdc.europa.eu/en/hepatitis-c/facts

6.https://www.hepatitiscentral.com/news/exercise-is-a-must-if-you-are-battling-hepatitis-c/

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