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Conclusion
Hepatitis C is a viral disease with an acute and chronic phase. Some patients have a self-limited disease without severe consequences. Others continue with a chronic and long-standing disease that may last up to 30 years. The survival rate in 5 and 10 years is very high, but the consequences of the disease in the long term are very severe, including decompensated cirrhosis and liver cancer.
Signs and symptoms of hepatitis C are only apparent when the liver damage is extensive and severe. In the earliest stages of the disease, patients only report extra-hepatic symptoms such as myalgias and arthralgias.
Treatment for hepatitis C should be initiated as soon as possible, but doctors recommend waiting for 6 months to monitor the disease’s spontaneous resolution.
References
Kaplan, D. E. (2020). Hepatitis C Virus. Annals of Internal Medicine, 173(5), ITC33-ITC48.
Mehta, S., & Bonkovsky, H. L. (2001). Hepatitis C: A review and update. J Am Acad Dermatol, 44(2), 159-182.
Terrés-Speziale, A. M. (2003). Hepatitis C. Natural history and current status of its management. Revista Mexicana de Patología Clínica y Medicina de Laboratorio, 50(4), 179-189.
AASLD/IDSA HCV Guidance Panel, Chung, R. T., Davis, G. L., Jensen, D. M., Masur, H., Saag, M. S., … & Fontana, R. J. (2015). Hepatitis C guidance: AASLD‐IDSA recommendations for testing, managing, and treating adults infected with hepatitis C virus. Hepatology, 62(3), 932-954.
